Promise
by HazelDragonfly
Summary: It's been three weeks since the Flirtual Killer was caught. Lindy never left, but she and Tommy are both fighting their inner demons while an old enemy is out to get Tommy. One last adventure for Tindy.
1. Chapter 1

She was running trying to keep them at a distance, to keep them from catching her, but they only ran faster reaching out for her, calling her name, _Lindy_. They said it over and over again, _Lindy_. She ran faster, but her legs were aching and she knew she wasn't going to be able to go on much longer. She looked back and saw how their faces were twisted into a mask of fury, revenge evident in their eyes. The red gash on their throats livid against the never ending darkness behind them. She ran on, she could feel them right behind her, one of their hands managing to touch her hair. She tripped over something sending her sprawling. She turned over to see them standing over her. _Lindy_ , they spit out her name as though it were something vile. It was all of them, all of the people whose deaths she had caused. There were many like Reese, Oliver, Tessa… Ben. She wanted to tell them she was sorry that she hadn't meant for any of it to happen, but no words came out. Reese bent down, the blade in his hand glinting in the light. "Please," she tried to say, but the words were stuck in her throat, she was terrified. The blade came closer, pressing against her throat, she could feel it cutting her. She looked down as the trickle of blood began to stain the front of her white shirt. She looked back up at them. There was no mercy, no forgiveness in their eyes. They began to laugh, a harsh sound that made her skin crawl. She looked up at Reese's face, but it had turned into Jake's. "I did it all for you," he told her.

Lindy woke up with a gasp, her hand clutching her chest and her bed sheets tangled around her legs, she wiped a shaky hand across her sweaty forehead. "It was just a dream, it was just a dream," she told herself over and over trying to calm her pounding heart. The pale gray light of morning streamed into her room, a bird chirped outside of her window, but she was still caught up in the dream. It had felt so real.

She walked into the bathroom on shaky legs and splashed cold water on her face, slowly her heart rate returned to normal. She needed to get some air.

It had been three weeks since the Flirtual killer had been caught and thrown in jail, A.K.A Jake Bolin. Three weeks since Lindy had been able to stop constantly looking over her shoulder and worrying over her friends' safety, but Jake had left his scar. She'd let in another person into her life who she had thought she could trust and he had been the one to hurt her most. He had killed so many people and had almost killed Sophia. She blamed herself for all those people's deaths although everyone insisted she shouldn't.

Lindy walked into her apartment balancing two cups of coffee and a bag of muffins. Lindy wanted to make Sophia breakfast but she didn't really want to poison her, she had already been stabbed and could have died, a person could only handle so much.

Sophia had spent over a week in the hospital and had been on bed rest for the last two weeks. IRL had been closed the whole time and Lindy had taken a month off of work to take care of her. The doctor had said that Jake hadn't managed to slash anything too serious, but the loss of blood could have killed her. It was almost as if Jake hadn't really wanted to kill Sophia because he knew that Lindy would have never forgiven him. It didn't seem to cross Jake's mind that what he had already done was despicable and there was no way that Lindy would have ever forgiven him.

Sophia was already awake when Lindy let herself into the apartment, she was sitting on the couch and flipping through channels on the TV. "Hey," Lindy said, "Good morning."

"Hey," Sophia said, "I woke up and you weren't here, I thought-" she turned around and caught sight of the coffees and the bag Lindy was holding. "Oooh, are those what I think they are?"

"Yup," Lindy grinned. "A caramel macchiato with extra whip and a blueberry muffin, for you," she said taking out her banana chocolate chip muffin and handing the bag with the blueberry one to Sophia along with her coffee. "You know me so well," Sophia said through a mouthful of muffin. She had wasted no time digging into it. "Yeah, I do," Lindy said taking a sip of her Americano. She saw Sophia rub the back of her neck, she knew, although Sophia never told her that she sometimes still got sore from the stab wound even though she had already healed.

Her mind went back to the night Sophia had been hurt, the day before Jake had been caught, and the day she had been hoping she would get some closure about Sara. She had been so scared that Sophia was going to die that she wouldn't be able to save her just like she hadn't been able to save Sara. She had been so scared that Jake would hurt Connor and Tommy. She hadn't wanted any more people getting hurt because of her.

"I will never stop looking for you, Lindy." Tommy had told her. That scene of Tommy looking so conflicted, all of the different emotions: anger, disbelief, frustration, and finally resignation flashing across his face when he had had to let her go with Jake along with the one of Sophia lying on the ground bleeding replayed over and over in her mind despite the fact that Jake had already been caught.

Her worry over Sophia had made Lindy put Sara on the back burner for a while. She hadn't even dared to look at what was in the tablet Jake had given her at the train station before Tommy and George had rescued her and captured Jake. She hadn't done it for fear of what she would find, she was afraid that it would be another dead end and after Hart Island she didn't think she would be able to handle another one.

"Lindy? Earth to Lindy!" Sophia was waving her hand in front of Lindy's face with a look of concern on hers. "Lindy you need to stop," Sophia said. "You can't keep living like this."

"Living like what?"

"You can't keep reliving what happened that night, you have to move on. You can't keep punishing yourself over what happened. You have to know that it's not your fault."

She didn't even bother denying that that was what she had been thinking about. "It was my fault, Sophia. What happened to you and Ben and Tessa and everyone else it's all on me. If it hadn't been for me none of you would have been in danger in the first place. Nobody else would have died…"

Sophia looked angry now. "Don't you _dare_ blame yourself, Lindy. Everything that happened, it was all because of psycho-crazy Jake. I don't blame you, none of us blame you! Something was wrong with _him_ not you!"

"But Sophia-."

"Don't but Sophia me," she said setting her coffee down firmly on the coffee table between the two of them. Lindy didn't think she had ever seen her this angry. "What's your fault? Being beautiful? Amazing? Because you hadn't figure it out sooner? Well none of us did Lindy. So you can't keep blaming yourself and reliving it over and over. We all wish we had figured out that Jake was a psycho sooner. You, me, Connor, George, Tommy, he had us all fooled, but sometimes we don't see these things coming as much as we want to. I am so sorry it happened, Lindy. Jake left his scars- on everyone, but he'll never hurt us again, he's behind bars for life." She leaned over and gripped Lindy's hands in hers, hard, looking her straight in the eye. "Now we just have to learn to go back to normal, even if that is the hardest part, we have to do it. It takes a lot more time to build yourself back up than it does to crumble, but you have to remember that when you—when we finally do we'll be stronger than ever before."

Lindy just looked at her. It was like Sophia had looked deep into her mind, her soul, and seen what was there and had given her what she needed to hear. It was like she had injected her with hope and energy, things she felt she had lost weeks—months ago. Lindy smiled at Sophia and she knew that it was a real smile she leaned over and hugged her hard. "Thank you," she whispered in her ear.

"How touching," Connor said coming in to the living room. He had a spare key to the apartment and no job yet so he came around all the time to look after Sophia and to cook dinner sometimes. "She's right though, none of us blame you. Just be glad that that crazy is behind bars for good and he's never coming out." It was one thing for Sophia to say that, but Connor? He and Lindy had never really been friends but his words touched her.

"Thank you Connor." She looked at the both of them feeling thankful. She stood up and stretched having already downed her cup of coffee, she still had half a muffin left, but she wasn't really hungry anymore. "I'm going to go for a run, take care of Sophia, Connor."

Lindy headed into her room and changed into her workout clothes. She could hear Sophia and Connor in the other room discussing what Sophia should wear since Sophia was sure that Yeager was going to show up later. Sophia always made sure she was changed and ready for the day in case Yeager showed up. He had shown up the day after Sophia had been released from the hospital. She had been wearing sweats and an oversized T-shirt and had freaked out that Yeager had caught sight of her like that and demanded that Lindy not let him in. Since then she always made sure she was ready by ten since Yeager visited several times a week to see her. Lindy finished putting her hair up into a ponytail, grabbed her phone and her keys and said goodbye to Sophia and Connor. Out on the street she put on her earphones and decided to run to Central Park, it was about a twenty minute run from the apartment and she didn't want to stop until she got there, she needed to clear her head. She had a lot to think about.

She loved the way running made her feel like no one could touch her, if only that were true she thought grimly. She didn't stop running until she had reached Central Park and had found a bench that wasn't occupied. She sat right in the middle of it since she didn't really want someone who was going to feed the park pigeons to sit next to her. She just wanted to be alone with her thoughts for a while. Lindy took off her earphones, leaned her head back against the bench, and closed her eyes. She didn't know how long she stayed like that, letting the sun warm her face and the breeze play against her hair when a voice brought her out of her head.

"Hey, is it okay if we join you?" She didn't need to open her eyes to know whose voice that was it was as familiar to her as the codes she used on her computer. Nevertheless he had startled her. Her eyes flew open.

"Hey," she responded, she hadn't expected to see him here. He had sweat staining the front of his tank top and a water bottle in his hand, clearly he had also been running. She kept looking into his hazel eyes and he kept looking into her chocolate ones. They stayed like that for a minute until he looked away.

"So uh could we…" he gestured awkwardly to the small empty space of bench beside her. Lindy snapped out of her daze, "Oh yeah sure," she scooted over to make room for Tommy. Wait, we? She didn't see anyone with him. Then she looked down realizing that his companion wasn't human, it was a dog. She smiled involuntarily, she missed having a dog. She had had one when she was younger in her hometown and she had wanted one now but there wasn't enough room in her and Sophia's apartment. Besides that Sophia was allergic, so she claimed although Lindy strongly suspected that Sophia was just worried the dog would chew up everything in its path. Tommy sat down while his dog laid down on the ground between the two of them.

"I didn't know you had a dog," she told him although she wasn't really surprised. She looked at the unconscious way that he scratched his dog behind the ears while looking at her with a smile that softened his face. "What's his name?"

"Boris. I've had him for three years now. I found him in an alley near my apartment looking for food in some trash cans he had knocked down. He didn't have a collar and nobody claimed him when I posted signs, so I kept him." He smiled looking fond of the memory. Impulsively Lindy leaned down and patted the dog's head and scratched him behind the ears. Boris stood up and licked her hand before laying back down. "Seems like he likes you." Boris wagged his tail in agreement. "So how have you been, Lindy? I haven't seen or talked to you in weeks."

It was true. The last time they had talked it had been at the hospital while Sophia was still there recovering. The same day he and George had rescued her at the train station. Lindy had thanked him for saving Sophia and rescuing her and had gone back into Sophia's hospital room hardly leaving her side until she was released and even then she hadn't really left the apartment. Tommy had wanted to give her space to recover from the entire ordeal so he still didn't know where he stood with Lindy, if he was forgiven yet or not. Admittedly three weeks was probably not enough considering it had taken them months to catch the killer, who had turned out to be right under their noses the entire time, but he couldn't stand not seeing her anymore. If he hadn't run into her here at the park he would have likely gone to go check up on her at her apartment, which would have been embarrassing. Was it a coincidence? He briefly wondered if the universe was trying to tell him something but he brushed off that thought almost as soon as it had come to him. He didn't believe in those things, although he had asked a psychic about Lindy's sister, so maybe he had some faith.

"I've never been better," Lindy lied.

Tommy could see right through her. He had found that he could before, although he was not always able to decipher what she was thinking, which infuriated him more than he cared to admit since it made her completely unpredictable at times. He had to admit though that it kept him on his toes. He knew that she was lying, there were dark circles under her eyes that she had unsuccessfully tried to hide with makeup. Normally he wouldn't have pushed the issue, but he still didn't know where he stood with her. She had told him that if he saved Sophia she would finally be able to forgive him. It sounded selfish even in his thoughts, to voice it would make him sound petty, but he had to know.

"Lindy?" She had been looking down at Boris but looked up at the sound of his voice. "Yeah?" He fidgeted with the sleeve of his hoody. Lindy didn't think she had ever seen him this uncertain before. "You know that you can tell me anything right? I'll always help you no matter what it is." Lindy stiffened. "I know, Tommy, but you-"

"I know I broke your trust and that what I did was wrong, Lindy, and I regret it. I really do. You have no idea how much. I'm so sorry, but you have to know that I will do everything I can so that you can have faith in me again." He was looking at her right in the eye. She looked away and watched a couple walk by hand in hand. Tommy saw them too and felt a pang in his chest. He looked back at Lindy, but she didn't look back, she was silent for a few minutes. Tommy just waited.

"It's hard for me to trust people," she finally said looking back at him. It wasn't always this way, but when I get hurt I push people away. We've helped each other out a lot, I think you can see why I was so hurt when I found out you had used me to get to Bubonic." Tommy started to say something, but she held out her hand. "Let me finish Tommy. You saved Sophia, so I do forgive you and you also let me leave with Jake that night. You trusted me to do what I had to do. I just couldn't let any more people get hurt because of me. Thank you for those things." She sighed, "But I can't say I completely trust you, Tommy. I know it's not fair since you've done a lot for me, but I just can't yet."

Tommy breathed a sigh of relief. She had forgiven him. Part of him had thought that she would never forgive him, but she had. She didn't _completely_ trust him, she did a little bit, but he vowed then and there that he would work hard to gain all of her trust back. "Letting you go with him was one of the hardest things I ever had to do, Lindy." His voice sounded so raw so vulnerable at the memory that Lindy felt it cut into her. "But if there's one thing I have always done, it is trust you. I can accept that you don't trust me yet, but trust me when I say this, Lindy. I told you before that I would never stop looking for you and now I am telling you that I will never stop until I gain your trust back." She gave him a small smile and told him the same thing she had told him on Hart Island right before she had left with Jake.

"I know." It filled him with hope.

Because she did know, Tommy was always trying to keep his word. What had made her distrust him in the first place was what he had withheld from her.

They sat in a somewhat comfortable silence. Tommy felt better. He had gotten the answers he needed. Before, the possibility of her answer had kept him tossing and turning at night but he knew now where he stood with Lindy. He knew that he could eventually gain her trust back, even if it took a long time for that to happen, he had hope.

Boris barked bringing him back to reality. "I have to get going. I have to get Boris back to my apartment, get ready, and head down to work." He smiled at her. "I'm glad we had this conversation, Lindy."

She nodded, "So am I."

"Do you want me to give you a ride back to your apartment? It's on my way."

Lindy shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I really want to run, it's been a while and I want to work out more."

Suddenly an idea occurred to him. He wanted to keep seeing her. He didn't want them not talking for as long as they had been the past few weeks. He'd gotten used to seeing her nearly every day and the lack of her presence had put him on edge. The protective detail had stopped now that Jake was in jail, but he had found that it was in his nature to keep protecting Lindy.

"Hey, he said suddenly. "How about I show you some self-defense? We'd both be working out and it's always good to know some…just in case." He wasn't insinuating that anything bad would happen to her, but he would just feel better if she knew how to defend herself better. Tommy had seen her in action back at the Virtual Slumber apartment when she had been attacked. She had put up a hell of a fight. That was the way his Lindy was, she didn't give up she was a fighter. Another memory of something the two of them had done at that apartment tickled his mind, but he pushed it away before the image could fully form in his mind.

Lindy hesitated, she wanted to say no, but what would be the harm to learn some self-defense from Tommy? He was right it was always nice to know a few things. She could see that Tommy saw her hesitating, the hope dimming from his eyes with every passing second.

"Okay," Lindy said finally. "Where at?" Tommy grinned, it lit up his whole face. He needed to smile like that more often she thought.

"I'll text you the details later." He waved goodbye letting Boris lead him back to his car. He felt happier than he had in a long time. Lindy stared after them until they had rounded a corner and disappeared from view. She turned and ran in the opposite direction heading deeper into the park.


	2. Chapter 2

She didn't get back to her apartment for another two hours. She would start out running and then walk so that she could catch her breath. Then her demons would pop back into her mind and she would take off running again wishing that she could leave them far behind. She tried pushing her guilt and fear out of her mind but they always creeped back up. Lindy had always been good at keeping her emotions bottled up, but she knew that if she didn't do something about them soon they were going to boil over eventually. It was one of the reasons among others she had decided to do self-defense with Tommy, she needed to punch, kick, and scream. She wasn't going to hurt Tommy, she'd never do that on purpose, but there would likely be a boxing bag at the gym where they were going to train and she was not going to spare it.

She let herself into her apartment, calling out Sophia's name. She looked in all of the rooms but Sophia wasn't there and neither was Connor, she figured Connor had taken her out for lunch since it was already noon. That was fine. She didn't want Sophia to see through her. She didn't want her to see that she was still upset despite the talk they had that morning.

She went into the bathroom locking the door behind her and stared at herself in the mirror. She didn't look so good to say the least. There were dark circles under her eyes, she had lost weight, and there was a haunted look in her eyes. She looked away, she couldn't bear to look at herself anymore. She needed a long hot shower. She turned on the tap as hot as she could stand it, stripped down, and walked in letting the water wash over her. If only she could wash away everything. Everything she had done, she felt dirty every time she thought about what she did with Jake. It was something she had never told anybody about, not even Sophia. She wouldn't be able to stand the look of horror that would surely be on her friend's face if she ever found out. She wished she could take it back, that she could have _known_. It was eating her up inside, it was her fault he did what he did. She shook herself. No, Sophia, was right, it was _not_ her fault some creep had thought that what he was doing was going to win over Lindy. She scrubbed herself until her skin was pink trying to wash away the memory of Jake. She turned off the tap and stepped out of the bathtub, wrapping a towel around herself. The room was full of steam from her shower, fogging up the mirror so that she couldn't see herself. Good she didn't want to.

Tommy had been at the precinct for a few hours now, a folder opened in front of him for another case, but he couldn't concentrate. He was thinking about Lindy. He knew that he was acting like an idiot but he couldn't help it. He was wondering what she was doing at that moment. He shook his head trying to clear it." Get a hold of yourself, Calligan," he told himself sternly. He'd dated girls before but never really in a serious way, they'd go out a few times, have some fun, and then part ways. He desperately wished that he and Lindy could just part ways, but at the same time he didn't want to, he couldn't. Lindy had cast some sort of spell on him without even trying, she drove him completely crazy but it didn't really bother him, he rather liked it. But he knew that he had to push those feelings away. He tried so damn hard to push down his feelings but whenever he caught sight of her all his efforts evaporated. But he knew that nothing could even happen between them, his loyalty to Ben came first not a girl, but this wasn't just some girl, this was Lindy.

Tommy saw a shadow fall over his desk. He looked up into Sargent Shaw's eyes. She had been in the hospital for a few days before being released and had made a full recovery. She had taken a week off and was now back at Cyber Crimes, seemingly to bother Tommy. A knowing look was on her face. "I see your mind is on other things, Detective." Tommy immediately became defensive. "No I've been here working at my desk the whole morning."

"If you call staring off into space working, then yes, you've been hard at work."

"Is this supposed to be an interrogation? Is there something you need me to do, Sargent?" he said a bit too testily to his superior, but it didn't appear to faze her.

"I thought that after we caught Jake Bolin you would be relieved, at peace even, you have closure, but you still act like there is someone out to get you."

It's because I can't get over Lindy he thought, but he quickly pushed that thought out of his mind. "Is this supposed to be some kind of new touchy feely management approach you're taking with me?"

He saw something flash in her eyes. "A serial killer who was Ben's killer and Lindy's stalker was caught, yet you still seem uneasy, why?"

It's not like he and his boss ever talked very openly about anything only about work related stuff, not about their feelings. So why was she even asking? He didn't really want to talk about his feelings, feelings that he couldn't even bring himself to admit let alone to his boss. She saw the look on his face and a look of understanding passed over hers. "Ah, I see." She laid a hand over his shoulder, he wanted to move away, but didn't. "You should tell her." Tommy had finally had enough he moved away from her hand and stood up. He knew exactly who she was referring to without her actually saying it and he didn't appreciate his boss meddling into his personal life.

"What is it Sargent? Is there something you actually need? Because I know you don't normally stop by and chit-chat no matter what's been going on, so there's no good reason you're here right now like a psychiatrist, _so what is it_?" She looked at him calmly, giving nothing away. She was trained to hide what she was really feeling. So was Tommy but he seemed to have forgotten how to do that with Lindy around. He had come close to showing her too many times how much he really cared about her. The closest having been when he had had to let her leave Hart Island with Jake. Hearing her say she loved Jake had been harder than Lindy could have possibly imagined, he had felt like she had actually punched him in the gut.

"You're right, detective, there is a reason I'm here right now," she said, her voice turning businesslike. "Come into my office," she motioned for him to follow her. He did so, grudgingly. "Close the door behind you and take a seat, Tommy." A small alarm went off in his head, she had called him by his name. She normally always called him, detective or just Calligan. Whatever this was he wasn't going to like it.

He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "Sit down, Tommy."

"I'm fine standing." She let it slide and sat down behind her own desk. She didn't waste any time. "Bubonic has been active again." Catherine let the words sink in. "Bubonic has always been a priority for the Cyber Crimes Unit, he got pushed back a bit because of the Flirtual Killer case, but now that that has been resolved we need to focus all of our energy and resources on Bubonic. Two days ago he hacked and brought down several government systems in Washington and we have every reason to believe that he'll try to bring down our Cyber Crimes Unit. He's mad and intent on revenge. We don't know what he's planning, but we need to keep our eyes and ears open. I need you alert, Tommy, and if that takes settling things with Lindy than do so. She can't be a distraction to you. She's a great girl, one of the smartest and most determined people I have ever met and she has you wrapped around her finger and yet she doesn't even know it."

Tommy stood up straight ready to defend himself to tell her how wrong she was, but she held up a hand to stop him. "Don't bother trying to say otherwise, Tommy. It's in your eyes every time you look at her, your eyes follow her around the room, you're always ready to keep her from harm's way at a moment's notice. I'm not blaming you for falling—."

Tommy left the room before she could finish her sentence, slamming the door behind him. How was it that his boss could tell? He grabbed his leather jacket from the back of his chair and his phone from his desk and walked out of the precinct into the cool New York afternoon.

The guilt was always there, his feelings were always there even though he never wanted to admit it to himself, but he couldn't keep denying it. What would Ben think? If he were alive and Tommy had gone after Lindy that would have been a horrible thing to do, a betrayal. But even though it always hurt him to think about it, Ben was gone. He had to go on with his life, he wanted to have a chance to be with someone he knew would make him happy. He couldn't keep denying it anymore as messed up and wonderful as it was, he knew that he was in love with Lindy Sampson.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I realize I should have done this back in chp 1, but wither way. I hate that the show was canceled, it was left with so many unanswered questions and I hated that Lindy just left like that. She hadn't even looked in the tablet before leaving, so with this fanfic I wanted to answer some of those questions the show left in my own way and have Lindy stay. So without further a do here's the new chapter.**

The next day Tommy was waiting for Lindy in the training room of the gym. He had texted her the night before to meet him here. He had been waiting for about ten minutes and he expected her in about five more. The room they were going to train in was dimply lit, it had a mirror covering a whole wall, the floor was padded although it was so worn down that if someone fell it didn't offer much cushioning. There were wooden beams running the whole length of the ceiling, and there was a doorway that led to the actual gym with all kinds of workout machines.

He had purposely given Lindy an earlier time to be here. He was pretty sure she still harbored a bit of resentment towards him and would try to be late just to bother him. Hence the earlier time and he had been right. She hadn't gotten here when he had told her to be, but she would still be on time.

He smiled to himself and decided to kill some time by throwing some punches at the boxing bag. He headed toward the back of the room where it hung from a beam in the ceiling. He began to whale on it imagining Jake Bolin's face on it more than once. He had killed his best friend and had made Lindy suffer. And even though he was ashamed to even think about it and as petty as it was, he had been jealous of him. Jake had been much closer to Lindy than he would ever be able to be. Jake, who was the least deserving man in the world, had been with Lindy in ways that Tommy could only imagine. He hit the boxing bag harder. He needed to stop thinking like this, but things were easier said than done.

He heard footsteps behind him and he turned around to see Lindy approaching him. "Hey, sorry I'm late. Although I didn't think being late would be bad enough to make you take out your anger on that boxing bag," she said with an amused look on her face. His heart had leapt into his throat. She had come. A part of him, the part that loved to torment him had been trying to convince him that she wouldn't come after all. He smirked at her and wiped a hand across his forehead since he was already sweating.

"I'm just warming up and you're actually on time."

"Well I hope you'll go easier on me than you did on that poor boxing bag." She thought about how much she wanted to punch it herself to release all of her pent up frustrations, but she didn't really want anyone to see her do that. She'd just have to wait. "And what do you mean I'm early? I thought you said to be here by-."

"I did, but I figured you'd try to get here late so I purposely gave you an earlier time so that you'd be here when you actually needed to be. We only have this place to ourselves for an hour before a class of rookies come in to train, so I needed you here on time."

She made a noise of disbelief. "You know me so well," she said sarcastically. "Fine let's get started then."

She turned and made her way to the center of the room while Tommy continued to smirk at her behind her back. "Wipe that smirk off your face and get over here already," she said making him start. "How did you-?"

"Guess you're not the only one who know things."

He made his way over to her, even in workout gear she looked good he noted. "Tommy?"

"Hmm?"

"Why haven't we done this before?"

"What, self-defense training?" She nodded. "Well," he began. He wasn't sure himself it had kind of been a spur of the moment decision yesterday since he had wanted to keep seeing her. "Honestly, I do feel guilty for not thinking of this sooner. This kind of training is invaluable and God knows that you've been in enough situations where this would have been useful to you, but either way you had a protective detail then and now you don't." And I want you safe, but he didn't say that last part out loud. She nodded, seemingly accepting his answer.

"Okay I'm ready for this," she said. He smiled he knew that she would always be ready for anything.

"All right then," he turned in to teacher mode Lindy noticed, she hadn't really seen this side of him before and she was curious despite herself.

"Your goal today is to land a punch on me and if you can to knock me down."

She crossed her arms. "Really, that's it?"

"Well, yeah, you have to be able to do that to anyone who attacks you. I'm gunna show you some moves to do that. There's not always going to be something around to hit someone with. Although to be fair you should always check your immediate surroundings for that first."

"I'm pretty sure I can knock you down. I've knocked Connor down before." She thought back to the boxing class she had ambushed Connor in, she had been pretty angry then.

Tommy snorted. "No offense, but I think I'm going be a little harder to knock down than Connor was." Even though he said this he was secretly impressed. Lindy narrowed her eyes at him. She made it her mission to knock him down at least once before their hour together was over today. Tommy seemed to sense this and decided to get on with the lesson.

"All right you're small, but you're quick, use that to your advantage. People will expect you to be an easy target because they think that they'll be able to overpower you. Prove them wrong." He looked like he had complete faith in her which touched Lindy although she felt a little irked that he had called her small. He was standing right in front of her looking down at her with his hands on his hips. He was over a head taller than she was she noted absently, she wasn't that small he was just freakishly tall.

"Try not to turn your back on your attacker because they'll use that to their advantage." He took hold of her arm that was hanging loosely at her side wrapping his warm fingers around her wrist. The touch sent an electric shock through her, surprising her. She looked up quickly but his face was neutral.

"I'm going to have to touch you to show you some of the moves," he said, wrongly interpreting her quick look as one of anger.

Of course he was going to have to touch her to show her how to defend herself and how an attacker might hold her. What had she been expecting? He brought her arm toward his chest gently but firmly. "If someone grabs your arm like this," he began softly. "Your first instinct will be to pull away. Don't do that. Just squat- as ridiculous as it sounds it works," he said at the look she threw his way. "And use your free hand or your feet to hit his target areas closest to you."

"Target areas?"

"Yeah, the eyes, ears, nose, groin, or knees." She nodded understanding. He took a hold of her other arm as well so that he was holding on to both of them. He brought her closer to him so that they were standing less than a foot apart. She could feel the heat radiating off of him. She felt her stomach flutter and could see Tommy visibly swallow. "If someone grabs both of your arms like this. Try to bang your head against their nose which should break it if you do it hard enough, the pain should make them lose their grip on you." She was staring right at his chest so hitting him there wasn't going to do much damage. Tommy looked at where she was looking and chuckled. "Or in your case and anyone else's who can't reach their attacker's nose. Try to reach their other target areas, like their knees or groin," he advised her. He let go of her wrists and stepped back. "Another common move an attacker uses is the bear hug," he continued.

"Is that really what it's called?"

"Yup, you'll see why, now turn around," he said, swirling his finger to indicate that she should do so. She did, and suddenly she found herself wrapped in Tommy's arms. She stiffened but forced herself to relax. She needed to stop getting worked up. "Usually when someone finds themselves in this position, the victim just tends to thrash around which is what the attacker wants. They want to tire out the victim." Lindy could feel his warm breath on her cheek which was making it hard to think straight. That coupled with the fact that his arms were around her and that since her back was against his chest she could feel his chest vibrate with every word he said and could feel every taut muscle. It seemed too intimate. She found herself wanting to lean her head back…what the hell was she doing? She forced herself to focus on the task at hand. "What next?" she asked a little too gruffly.

"Now squat down again," she did and Tommy followed her down tightening his arms around her as they did so. "Now don't actually do it or you'll break my nose, but what you would do now is you would throw your head back and connect it with his nose or stomp on his feet while pulling their fingers apart so the attacker loosens their grip on you and follow it with a hit to the face or neck and then you can run."

Lindy feigned throwing her head back making Tommy loosen his grip on her reflexively to avoid being hit. She looked at his startled face and burst out laughing, the sound making Tommy's heart soar. "I wasn't actually going to hit you, you know," Lindy told him when she finally managed to control herself

"Considering you had the opportunity I wasn't sure." She rolled her eyes at him. Tommy ran his hands through his hair trying to act nonchalant although inside he was trembling. He was starting to wonder if this had been a bad idea. He was close to her…too close. When her back had been turned to him he had wanted to spin her around and lean in and… he shook himself. He could not do this.

He needed to get her out of his head, but he knew that wasn't going to happen, he was in too deep already. "What next?" she asked with an indescribable look on her face. He was half glad and half disappointed that she seemed to be thinking so clearly. He collected himself together resolving to focus and show her what she needed to know to protect herself. For the rest of the hour he showed her maneuvers, hits, and kicks to get her out of various holds suppressing any feelings he got anytime he had to touch her, he tried not to make it too often. He was pleased that she was catching on, she was a quick learner.

"You're pretty good, you know," he told her.

"Yeah, well I guess being attacked repeatedly made me better." Tommy mentally kicked himself.

"I'm sorry," he began.

She sighed and rubbed her temple, "No, I'm sorry. I haven't been in a very good mood lately." He could understand that. "Well, no one can blame you you've been through a lot." She just shrugged. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head. She didn't want to open up and Tommy could hardly blame her. Tommy wanted to push the issue but he didn't dare, he was already walking on thin ice with her already as it was and he didn't want to push her away. He decided to change the subject and show her one last move before their hour was fully up. Both to teach her and to avoid what would surely be an awkward silence.

Lindy realized then that she still hadn't knocked Tommy down. She had managed to punch him a few times throughout their session, but that had been Tommy's goal. Her goal was to knock him down and prove to him that she could do it, not just to Connor.

So while he was showing her the proper stance for another move she quickly spun around behind him, grabbed his arm which was hanging loosely by his side, pushed down on his wrist, and pulled on the arm at the same time. Coincidentally, he had taught her that move earlier. Although he probably hadn't thought that she would use it on him. By the time he realized what was happening he was already in the air. He scrabbled the empty air for something to hold on to and managed to grab a hold of Lindy's shoulder, sending them both tumbling down.

He landed with a thump on his back while Lindy landed on top of him. She heard Tommy go, "Ooof." Presumably she had knocked the wind out of him. Her plan had kind of backfired. She hadn't meant to fall too, but ultimately she had succeeded in knocking Tommy down.

She looked at his face. He looked like he was trying to remember how to breathe. The fact that Lindy was on top of him probably didn't help either. "Are you okay?" she asked while simultaneously rolling off of him. He groaned in response. "Oh my God, Tommy, I didn't mean for it to go that far." She sat next to him and he rolled on his side facing her. He had his eyes squeezed shut as if in pain holding on to his stomach and groaning. "I'm so sorry," she told him feeling terrible. There was nothing she could do but wait for him to start breathing normally again. Finally he opened his eyes. Lindy didn't see anger which she had kind of expected, maybe a little annoyance, but he also looked…proud… and amused. Realization dawned on Lindy. She smacked his shoulder, "You idiot! You were faking this whole time?" Tommy began to laugh. "I thought I'd knocked the wind out of you and then when you still hadn't recovered I thought I'd done something more serious."

"You faked me out. I figured I'd return the favor."

"So I didn't knock the wind out of you?" she asked him.

"No, you did, but I made it seem worse than it actually was, you aren't exactly heavy." He said grinning.

"Well it worked," she mumbled looking away. She shrieked as she found herself being pulled sideways. Tommy had grabbed her hand and pulled her off balance. She found herself lying on the ground next to him. "What the hell was that for?"

"You were looking down on me," he joked.

She snorted, "You're practically a giraffe. You look down on everyone when you're standing up." That made him laugh harder, his laughter was contagious and Lindy soon found herself wiping tears from her eyes and wondering how long it had been since she had laughed that hard. Her laughter died away when she saw Tommy's intent gaze on her. She found herself trapped in it, unable to look away as if some magnetic pull were keeping her eyes on his.

Tommy ached to reach out and brush his thumb across her cheekbone. "Lindy," he whispered. Before he could say anything else the sound of approaching voices and footsteps stopped him, snapping him out of his daze. He sat up quickly enough that he felt the blood rush to his head. Lindy sat up just as Yeager walked into the room followed by a group of rookies. When Yeager spotted them he made his way over to where Tommy and Lindy were sitting. Tommy quickly stood up holding his hand out to help Lindy up. She took it but avoided his gaze. She felt like he kept his hand in hers longer than he needed to before pulling it away, but decided she was imagining it.

She turned to leave. "Tomorrow at the same time?" Tommy asked her before she could go. She turned back at him and offered him a small smile. "Sure, tomorrow. I'll see you then." She smiled at Yeager in greeting as she passed him.

"Can I talk to you?" Yeager asked Tommy. He barely heard him, but nodded anyway, his eyes glued on Lindy. He noticed how a blonde young man towards the front of the room nudged his friend as Lindy walked by. Tommy felt a twinge of something in his chest.

"Hey!" the blonde called out to Lindy. She turned toward him and smiled but looked distracted she didn't say anything back before heading out of the room "Tommy, can we talk?" Yeager asked him again.

"Oh, sure," he said finally paying attention.

"Let's talk out there," Yeager gestured toward the hallway outside of the training room. Tommy led the way. They were nearly out when the blonde who'd called out to Lindy stood in Tommy's way.

"Man, that girl is smoking", the guy said with an awed look on his face that Tommy found himself wanting to wipe off. "Hey man is that you're girl? She's hot." The feeling in Tommy's chest grew.

"No, she is not my girl," he managed to say through gritted teeth.

"So, she's like available?"

Tommy had enough. He stood up straight to show his full height which was an impressive 6'3 and gave the guy one of his signature no nonsense looks while crossing his arms. The guy's eyes grew wide. Yeager could see where this was headed so he interrupted before Tommy could say anything he'd regret. "She's off limits, Lewis," he said addressing the blonde, with full authority in his voice. "Now go back to your friends and get warmed up. I'll be in to start in a minute." Lewis practically ran back to join his friends who looked like they were trying hard not to laugh.

Yeager chuckled softly as they stepped out into the hallway. He turned and faced Tommy. "All right man, what are you doing?"

Tommy looked at him, confusion written all over his face. "What do you mean? You're the one who wanted to talk."

"I mean, what are you doing with Lindy?"

"I was just teaching her some self-defense." Tommy said wondering why Yeager wanted to know. Yeager just shook his head like it was obvious and Tommy was just making it more difficult than it had to be.

"I mean you're clearly into her. And you haven't done anything about it. You can't let a girl like that walk away."

Tommy could feel himself getting defensive. "I am not into her," but the lie sounded thin even to his own ears. Yeager shook his head clearly not believing him.

"Tommy," his voice sounded the way a parent's does when trying to patiently explain something to a child. "It's written all over your face every time you look at her, your eyes always follow her around the room. When she was working with us, you fought Catherine like hell to get Lindy out of assignments so she would stay out of danger and when that wasn't possible you fought like hell to be there along with her, risking Lindy being mad at you and putting yourself in danger, as long as she was safe."

"I'm a cop. That's my job, keeping people safe."

"Nah, man, you make it personal when she's involved. If what I saw in there," he nodded his head in the direction of the training room they had just walked out of, "Was not jealousy then I don't know what it was."

"I don't either."

Yeager chuckled. "You looked like you wanted to rip that guy's head off just for asking about Lindy. By the way the answer to that question is, yes, she is available. The thought of her dating someone else though kills you."

It was true. When he thought about someone dating Lindy, being with her in ways he could only imagine, of someone holding her… his insides turned at the thought. Yeager didn't comment on it, but Tommy knew that he had seen it on his face.

"You almost lost her once, with Jake, she liked him. He seemed like a really great guy, he had us all fooled. If he hadn't been a serial killer who knows where that relationship would have gone? I just don't want you to let her get away again." Tommy really didn't know why Yeager was getting into his non-existent love life, but it was making him angry, and the mention of Jake had turned up memories he had been trying hard to suppress. He knew exactly how far that relationship had gone, Jake had teased him about it.

"Go on. Ask me what it was like to be with her… _intimately_." He could have been lying about it, hanging the relationship in his face to torture him since Jake had seemed to figure out Tommy's feelings before he had fully accepted them himself, but Tommy had a gut feeling that Jake hadn't been lying. He had been caught, Lindy was safe. There had been no reason to lie since he had no longer had anything left to lose.

With barely concealed anger Tommy said, "But he was a serial killer. He tried to get close to Lindy by killing lots of innocent people who didn't deserve to die so horribly. Including Ben and he tried to kill others too, like Sophia." That made Yeager flinch.

"I know he was a serial killer. There's no way to change that. No way to change the past. No way bring back those people, but we're here now and as difficult or as painful it may be we have to move on and find happiness. Which is why I don't understand why you are making it so difficult to be happy since it's obvious that your happiness lies with Lindy."

"It's not that easy, Yeager." Tommy said looking down at the ground. He didn't bother to keep trying to deny that he had feelings for Lindy. Yeager could see right through him. It seemed like everybody could.

"Why?" Yeager asked exasperated. He peered at Tommy's face carefully and realization dawned on him. It's because of Ben isn't it?" Yeager asked quietly. "You feel like you would be betraying Ben by being with Lindy, right?"

Tommy's head snapped up. "Don't you dare bring Ben into this," he shouted at him. "I've beat you up before, Yeager. I can do it again." Tommy didn't know where those words had come from, but Yeager seemed to know it was a hollow threat. That Tommy's heart wasn't in it and that he was just angry because he had hit a nerve because what he had said was true.

"Go ahead, man. There's a class of rookies in there that would appreciate a vivid example of how to win a fight against an opponent. And let me tell you that this time the one whose gunna get their butt whooped isn't me." Tommy just glared at him. He wanted to leave, but it seemed like his feet were glued to the floor.

"You've gotta stop running away or fighting out your problems. You have to face them or they're gunna to turn around and bite you." Yeager rubbed his temple. "Look man, I'm not Ben. No one can replace him, but I can try to be there the way he was for you. I saw the way you guys were. You were inseparable, like brothers. I know that his death hit you hard, but if there's one thing I know, it's that Ben didn't like seeing you unhappy. He wouldn't want to see you going through life this way. You might see it as a betrayal if you were with Lindy, but I think that Ben would see it as a relief. He would want someone that would protect her and care for her the way he would."

"He didn't trust me with her before," Tommy said softly.

Yeager chose his next words carefully. "I believe that Ben is looking down on us and he has seen the way you protect her, he would be proud of you. I think he believes that if anyone should be with Lindy it should be you, his best friend." He chuckled. "Besides, you're both stubborn as hell I'm sure he thinks you both deserve each other."

Tommy suppressed a laugh. "Yeager, why do you care so much? Why are you involving yourself in my life? It's not like you've asked out Sophia and it's obvious you like her."

"Who says I haven't asked her out? And I'm doing it because I see you walking around unhappy, with this haunted look in your eyes. God knows you deserve happiness Tommy and so does she. I believe that you two can help each other find it." Yeager clapped a hand on his shoulder, "I have to go teach a class right now, but I want you to think about what I said, okay?" And with that he was gone leaving Tommy staring after him feeling as though he had been dissected, examined, and finally bandaged up.

As soon as Lindy walked into her apartment she was assaulted by Sophia. "Oh my God, Lindy! Where have you been?" she cried jumping off of the couch where she had been sitting with Connor and running over to her as soon as she saw her. Sophia didn't even give her a chance to answer. "Guess what happened?" she squealed. Lindy looked over at Connor with her eyebrows raised questioningly. Connor only rolled his eyes and grinned at his friend's excitement. She looked back at Sophia, she hadn't seen her best friend this excited in a long time. She had a strong feeling as to what it was that was making her this way, but before she told her she decided to mess with her a bit.

"Hmmm," Lindy tapped her chin pretending to be deep in thought. "You were window shopping with Connor and you saw a pair of leopard print heels that you must have?"

"No." Sophia was clasping her hands together, her eyes bright. Lindy knew she wasn't going to be able to keep this up very long.

"Leonardo DiCaprio called and demanded that you open up your club so that he can have a birthday bash there?" She heard Connor snicker.

Sophia clutched her chest, "No, but how amazing would that be?" Sophia was literally hopping up and down with excitement, Lindy tried hard to keep a straight face. "Guess again."

"Connor's moving away?" Connor made a face at her behind Sophia's back. She couldn't resist taking a dig at him considering how many times he had done it to her. "No! Lindy, you are a terrible guesser!" She clutched Lindy's shoulders dramatically. "Yeager asked me out!"

Lindy laughed. That was exactly what she had thought from the very beginning. Sophia glared at her. "You knew didn't you? You were guessing wrong on purpose." She accused.

"I just had a feeling," Lindy admitted. "I'm happy for you." She said truthfully despite the surge of joy and then the pang she had gotten when Sophia told her, although she wasn't sure why. She leaned in to give her best friend a hug. Sophia squeezed her back hard but pulled back quickly. "Ew, Lindy. Why are you all sweaty? Where were you?" She took in her workout clothes and the duffel bag hanging from her shoulder. "You weren't running or else you wouldn't have taken your duffel with you. Were you at the gym?"

"Kind of." Lindy shifted uncomfortably. She didn't really want to go into details because she didn't want Sophia to think of her workout with Tommy as anything more than a workout. Sophia had a powerful imagination. "I was with Tommy, he was teaching me some self-defense."

Sophia raised an eyebrow at her and placed a hand on her hip. "Really?" she said in a neutral tone. "That was nice of him."

"Yeah," she turned so that Sophia wouldn't see the blush that she was sure was spreading on her cheeks. However, Sophia had eyes like a hawk and didn't miss it. "Oh my God, did something happen?"

"No, nothing at all." She felt like she was lying although technically she wasn't.

"Yes it did! You're blushing! You almost never blush."

"Nothing happened, she repeated." Sophia gave her one last dubious look. She was too excited about Yeager to exhaust herself trying to get anything out of Lindy. She turned back towards Connor and demanded that he help her find a dress for her date the following night, giving Lindy a chance to shower, for which she was grateful. The third degree could stop and besides she had never been much interested in fashion and wouldn't be of any help to Sophia. Especially considering that she literally owned a black and white wardrobe. Connor and Sophia disappeared into Sophia's bedroom while Lindy headed into the bathroom all the while wondering what it was that Tommy had wanted to tell her before he had been interrupted.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for the reviews, guys. I really appreciate them. My goal is to update once a week if nothing gets in the way.**

The next day Tommy woke up earlier than he wanted to. He could feel Boris' weight on him as he repeatedly licked his face and whined demanding to be let out. As soon as Boris saw that Tommy was awake he jumped off the bed.

The fact that he had even been on Tommy's bed in the first place was remarkable. He was trained not to do that, meaning he had been trying to wake up Tommy for a while now.

Boris whined again making Tommy grin. "All right, boy, let's go for a walk." He threw the covers off of him and changed his sweats for yesterday's jeans, which he'd left pooled on the floor beside his bed. He threw on a tank top and a hoody and grabbed his keys. Boris was already waiting for him by the door, his tail wagging in anticipation. Tommy didn't even bother with a leash. Boris was generally well behaved and didn't run off.

Once outside, Boris did his business and they took a walk around the block. Tommy letting the cool morning air wake him up. When they got back to his apartment he fed Boris and was about to make himself a cup of coffee when he heard his cellphone ringing in his bedroom, having forgotten to take it with him on his walk.

He cringed when he saw that he already had five missed calls, he answered mid ring.

"Hello?"

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" A sarcastic voice answered on the other end.

"No…"

"Then would you like to tell why you haven't answered any of my calls?" Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose. He really wasn't in the mood to be reprimanded this early.

"I was out and I accidentally left my phone behind. Now tell me, Sergeant, to what do I owe the pleasure of hearing your voice this early in the morning?"

Catherine ignored the sarcasm. "We have a serious situation. I need you down here immediately, detective."

Even though she sounded businesslike Tommy could hear the worry in her voice. "I'll be right there," he said and hung up.

Twenty minutes later Tommy was pushing the doors open to the precinct. Immediately he could tell that something was wrong. People who were normally quietly tapping away at their computers were running around, computer screens which were normally on something or other were blank, and the hum of the computers- a noise that was normally unnoticeable but was glaringly obvious now- was replaced by silence.

Tommy grabbed Yeager's arm as he passed by with a file in his hands. "Hey, what's going on?" Yeager fixed him with a look that made Tommy's stomach drop out from under him. Whatever was going on it was serious.

"Follow me," was all he said. Yeager led him down the few steps to the main area of the precinct where they did most of their work. The main monitor on the wall was currently blank. Yeager sat down at one of the computers that was connected to it and began tapping in a few commands. "We've had a cyber-attack," he said without looking at Tommy.

"When?"

"We think it may have happened late last night or early this morning. Either way when we got in today everything was compromised. The cyber-attack has completely shut us down."

"So we're offline?"

Yeager nodded gravely. "We are no longer monitoring any activities online until we can get us back up." This was serious. If people weren't being monitored all hell could break loose, they could have another Babylon.

"How long do you think that will take?"

Yeager just shook his head. "I have no idea, man. I've been trying to get us up and running for the last hour, but these things take time and I don't seem to be making much headway."

"Detective Calligan." Tommy turned to see Catherine beckoning him into her office.

"You know there's only one person who could have done this, who would have gone after us like this, right? he asked Catherine once inside her office. She nodded. "I do."

Catherine tapped a file on her desk that Tommy immediately recognized as Bubonic's, having looked in it multiple times already. It was the thickest file they had on anyone. It was both impressive and horrific considering the amount of stuff he had done and the level in which he had done it in.

"We don't know what he's planning, but we need to figure it out quick, there's no one monitoring online activities in this area and that is a huge risk we cannot have." Tommy nodded, understanding how bad this was.

"However," she continued. "I have a feeling that whatever Bubonic is planning it has to do with something bigger than just compromising the Cyber Crimes Unit." Since with Bubonic there was always a bigger picture he knew she was right. He nodded, agreeing. The fact that they didn't know what the big picture was yet was have been enough to terrify anyone.

"Hey," Yeager said coming in. "I found something."

Tommy and Catherine looked at each other and followed Yeager back to the computer he had been working in. Yeager had managed to gain access to part of the network. He pointed to the monitor on the wall which now had a string of codes running down it in a pattern that looked familiar. It was the same set up Bubonic used, but there was one set of codes that kept repeating itself.

"So it's confirmed now. Bubonic is definitely behind the attack." Catherine said looking up at the screen, having recognized Bubonic's unique coding too.

"Yes, it's definitely him, but I haven't been able to figure out what the code that keeps repeating itself means." Yeager answered. Tommy studied it carefully and suddenly it hit him.

"He signed it. Bubonic freaking signed it." He shook his head at the ridiculousness of it.

"He wants us to know he did it because he's proud of his work," Catherine said with a disgusted look on her face.

"Yeah well, he always did have a sick sense of humor." Tommy could still vividly remember the beating he got from the jealous boyfriend Bubonic had tricked into thinking his girlfriend was cheating on him with Tommy. He also still hadn't replaced all of the furniture that had been taken from his apartment because of the fake online ad Bubonic had posted either. Bubonic was a freaking nuisance, but those things were just small game compared to what Tommy knew Bubonic was capable of.

"Try to get the system back up, Detective Yeager," Catherine ordered.

Yeager just nodded already at work. Suddenly the codes on the screen changed and came faster moving down almost like a waterfall.

"Detective, did you do that?"

Yeager shook his head. "No I didn't." His fingers were flying over the keyboard typing in a series of commands that didn't seem to affect the codes on the monitor in any way.

"Yeager, what's going on?" Tommy demanded.

"I don't know. It seems like someone is hacking into the computer again. I no longer have any control over the system." He tried tapping something else into the computer but nothing changed. He dropped his arms to his sides in defeat. "I can't do anything, there's an outside source that's preventing me from controlling the computer."

Suddenly the monitor's screen went blank. Yeager's arms still hadn't moved from his sides so he couldn't have done anything Tommy noted. Then the screen seemed to blink back on and an image came up.

It was Bubonic.

Tommy felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water on him. He hadn't expected this, but that's what Bubonic lived for, the unexpected and there he was staring back at them with the stupid bird mask covering his face.

"Hello everyone," Bubonic greeted in that formal tone he always used.

"What do you want, Bubonic?" Tommy demanded angrily.

"Well, hello to you too, Detective Calligan. I did think that you would be happier to see me seeing as we are old friends and all."

"Friends don't really have their friends beat up or go and shut down their workplace," Tommy said dryly.

"You're right, my mistake, Tommy." Bubonic said in an icy tone. "Since friends don't murder their friend's girlfriend either.

Tommy shut his eyes trying to collect himself. "Why are you doing this, Bubonic? Why attack the Cyber Crimes Unit? What is it that you want from us?"

Bubonic smiled slowly, it was a smile that promised of bad things to come. Tommy felt a chill run down his spine. He felt like he already knew the answer.

"Oh, detective, what I want is not something that you can give me, no one can. This I must get on my own." He leaned in to the computer for effect, his bird mask filling the screen.

"Revenge," he said slowly letting the word sink in.

"I didn't kill her, Bubonic. She killed herself."

Bubonic drew back. "And just why do you think she did it?" he hissed his voice rising. He didn't let Tommy answer. "Because she was afraid of what you were going to do to her! You drove her to do what she did." There was a hysterical edge to his voice. Tommy had no doubt at all that Bubonic was insane. Sane people didn't tend to do the sort of horrible things that Bubonic had done.

"You say you work for justice when you killed an innocent person! You killed _my_ girl and for that I'm going to make you pay deeply, Calligan. This is only the beginning," he promised. "By the time I'm done with you you're going to wish you had never been born. I am going to get my revenge if it is the last thing I do."

The screen went blank.

It was completely silent in the precinct. Yeager turned a concerned look to him that Tommy ignored. He turned around and saw that everyone who worked in the precinct right behind him, having gathered there as Bubonic was talking. They were all looking at him wide eyed, the fear clear in their eyes. They were right to fear Bubonic, anyone would. Tommy felt as if he were in a daze. He took a step forward and everyone parted to make room for him. Some scooted further back when he came too close as if he were a disease that they didn't want to catch. There was nowhere private to go in the precinct so he made his way toward Catherine's office and sat down. He knew that she was going to make him go in there to talk anyways.

He saw Catherine address everyone through the window that looked out over the precinct in her office. He couldn't hear what she was saying but he assumed that she was dismissing them since he saw the majority of the detectives grab their belongings and head out. Only a few stayed behind who immediately headed over to their work stations and began typing frantically into their computers.

Tommy had known before that Bubonic had it out for him because he blamed him for his girlfriend's suicide, but this was the first time that Bubonic had ever explicitly stated it. The first time he had ever really threatened his life.

Catherine came in with Yeager right behind her. "We'll be setting up a protective detail for you, Tommy," she said as soon as she saw him. He clenched his jaw. She had used his name again, as if to soothe him or make him feel better. But there was nothing she could really say to make this any better or to make it go away until they caught the maniac.

"I don't need a protective detail," he said through gritted teeth.

Yeager looked at him as if he were crazy. "Did you not hear what Bubonic just said to you? Did it go in one ear and out the other or something? He just threatened your life, Tommy."

"Trust me, I heard him loud and clear, Yeager, but I'm a big boy. I can take care of myself. I don't need someone constantly watching my every move, thank you."

"Yeager rolled his eyes at him. "You do realize that Bubonic has most likely been doing that already, right? He's probably just waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike."

Tommy did know that but he didn't appreciate Yeager pointing it out to him. He didn't want a protective detail following him around it would feel like an invasion of privacy, but mostly it would be like acknowledging that the danger was really present in his life. He suddenly wondered if this was how Lindy and Sophia had felt when they had a protective detail, if they had hated how their every move was being shadowed. Ben had been the one to start them on the detail but Tommy had taken over it when he had died and enforced all the more so when he began to have feelings for Lindy.

"I don't want a protective detail," he repeated. Catherine gazed at him. He felt like she understood the reason he was refusing although she didn't approve. Tommy stared back refusing to back down despite the fact that she made him feel like a bug under a microscope.

"Fine, detective, but remember, you're the one that chose this." She changed the subject. "I've sent almost everyone home except for a few select detectives whose skills we could use to help us get back up and working again. Yeager and yourself are included, but I'll understand if you want to go home, Calligan. I've already made a report to the FBI and a few agents should be here in a few hours with technicians to help us out and to ask a few questions."

Tommy didn't want to go home and mope he wanted to help catch the guy who had just threatened his life. "I'll stay," was all he said and followed Yeager out of the office.

For the next few hours Tommy and the rest of the detectives who had stayed behind worked on restoring the system and managed to make some headway before the technicians arrived and took over. The investigators poked around, asked everyone questions, taking particular interest in the fact that Bubonic had targeted Tommy, and left. The technicians stayed behind promising the investigators to report back when they got the system working and back online again.

Catherine sent the Cyber Crimes detectives home but staying behind herself. Yeager practically fled out the door after that. Tommy wondered why he was in such a hurry but didn't ask. He had texted Lindy right before questioning saying he was going to be late and she had texted back saying it was fine. He left soon after Yeager heading to meet Lindy at the gym.

The boxing bag swung back on its rope. As it made its way back toward Lindy she raised her fist and hit it again harder following it through with a kick. She had gotten to the gym early to make sure she got some one on one time with the boxing bag she needed to take out all of her frustrations out on it and to prove to Tommy that she could be on time, but he had texted her saying he was going to be late. Which was just fine with her since it gave her more time to do what she needed to do. She punched the bag repeatedly taking out all of her anger over herself and Jake, the pain she felt over Sara, her guilt over Ben and all the other innocent people's deaths, her hurt over Tommy's betrayal, and even the confusion she felt now about the two of them. She let all of this drive her fists. She was breathing hard but didn't stop.

She was so focused on what she was going and so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't hear the footsteps coming up behind her, she didn't know anyone was there, until an arm came around stopping her, she was spun around and she found herself staring at a broad chest. "Whoa, let up already. What's going on, did the bag look at you funny or something?"

Lindy would have laughed at the weak attempt at a joke if she wasn't so wound up. She shrugged. "Just needed a workout," she said lamely.

Tommy raised an eyebrow at her, the amusement clear in his eyes, but there was worry in there as well. "Were you planning on doing that to me?"

She just rolled her eyes at him. "No, I just needed to release some pent up energy I had." He wanted to ask more, but didn't.

"Well it looks like you have plenty of it. C'mon let's get started." Lindy followed him to the center of the room and they went over some of the moves from the day before. Lindy noticed with slight relief that they didn't go over the bear hug again.

After a while Lindy noticed that Tommy seemed distracted. He repeated his instructions more than once as if he had forgotten that he had already said them before, his moves were clumsy, and whenever she asked him something he only nodded his head absently as if barely listening.

Finally she had had enough. "Tommy?" He didn't seem to hear her.

"Tommy?" she said a little louder. No response.

"Tommy!" she snapped, waving her hands in front of his face to get his attention. He blinked hard as if to clear his head. "Oh, hey, sorry, were you saying something?" He was secretly wondering how long she had been trying to get his attention.

"Okay, what's going on?" she asked annoyed.

"Nothing," he said a little too quickly.

"Really," she said, placing her hands on her hips. Tommy knew he was in trouble. He knew he wasn't going to be able to just brush off her questions with a simple "I'm fine" this time.

"You're really going to lie to me like that?"

"I'm not-," she raised her hand up to stop him from coming up with any excuses.

"You are. You've been distracted ever since you got here. Obviously something's wrong. Is that why you were late today?"

"No."

"No," she said slowly. "Which means yes, doesn't it?" He didn't say anything. She was right and she knew it. He could feel the tension rising in her. He didn't know why he was lying to her. Bubonic was after him not her. He didn't think that telling her would put her in any danger, but he wanted to keep this under wraps for as long as he could.

"So," she said her voice slowly rising. "You want me to trust you, but you're still hiding things from me. You want me to spill out my guts to you, but you don't even trust me enough to tell me what's wrong, is that it? Because if that's how you think this is how it's going to work, then you're very wrong." She brushed past him angrily.

"This isn't even about you," he yelled after her, growing angry. She froze. "But why should I tell you anything? I know that something's bothering you, but you keep shutting me out. You're letting whatever you're feeling eat you up inside and I'm not supposed to hide anything from you when you're doing the same to me?" He regretted the words as soon as he said them.

She whirled around, her face flushed with anger and pointed an accusing finger at him. "It _does_ have to do with me because you're _lying_ to me. I actually have a reason to distrust you, Tommy. You're the one who broke my trust, remember?" She hissed. "It's your fault that you lost my trust and my respect when you used me and lied to me. You used my weakness to get to me and now you're lying to me again and you don't expect me to be angry? Well then this," she pointed her finger back and forth between the two of them, "Is not going to work out." With that she stormed out.

"Lindy!" he yelled after her.

But she was already gone.


	5. Chapter 5

**Check out my question in the reviews/comments, please. I want to know what you all think. Thanks!**

"Lindy have you seen my earrings?" Sophia asked surveying the room wildly.

"Which ones?"

"The sparkly studs, I can't see them." Lindy wordlessly pointed towards Sophia's right elbow where the earrings were lying in plain view on her vanity table.

Sophia blushed embarrassed. "Thanks," she said putting one on. "I'm just so nervous for tonight."

Lindy gave a small laugh. "Don't be. Yeager's going to go crazy for you." Lindy was sitting on the edge of Sophia's bed watching her put on the final touches for her date. Sophia looked pretty in a deep purple dress with a scoop neck and a slightly shorter hemline than what she usually wore and paired it with a pair of black kitten heels. Sophia had told Connor she wanted to look sophisticated but irresistible and it seemed like they had succeeded in picking the right look for that. Lindy wouldn't have known how to do that. She left the fashion to Sophia and just wore whatever she felt was comfortable, although she has to admit she had a little too much black and white in her wardrobe.

She fiddled with the edge of Sophia's red duvet. "Okay, what's wrong?" Sophia asked. She dropped her hand away from where she had just put on her other earring, completing her look.

"Nothing." She squirmed under Sophia's intense gaze.

"You've been really quiet and you've moping around since you got back from training with Tommy. Did he do something to you?"

Lindy sighed. She knew she couldn't hide anything from Sophia, at least not with that look she was giving her. "I am not moping around, I'm just angry. We got in a fight and I left."

Sophia groaned and sat down next to her, "You guys were fine yesterday, you even seemed happier. What did he do this time?"

Lindy could feel herself getting angry again just thinking about it. "He's hiding something from me. He wants me to trust him again, but how am I supposed to do that when he won't tell me the truth." She searched Sophia's face as if seeking the answer to her question there. Sophia fixed her with a serious look.

"Normally I would tell you to forget about him, but in this case I think that you guys need to talk and work out your problems." This surprised Lindy. "You want me to keep talking to him? When it was Ben who betrayed me you got me drunk and told me to forget about him. You told me to never let him darken my life with his presence again. Those were you're exact words," she added at the incredulous look Sophia gave her.

"Really, I said that?"

"Well, we were drunk when you said it."

"There is absolutely no doubt that Tommy should have told you about Operation Magnifly. He had no right to keep that from you. I can't tell you why he's keeping something from you now, but you should just ask him. But honestly I think that after everything that's happened he's never going to hurt you again."

"Why do you think that?"

Sophia gave Lindy a knowing look that she couldn't quite decipher. "I just have a feeling." Before Lindy could ask her to elaborate there was a knock at the door. "Oh my God, he's here!" Sophia yelped jumping up from her bed. Lindy couldn't help but grin at her friend's nervousness. She couldn't remember the last time Sophia had been this excited to go on a date before. "Wow, you really like him don't you?"

Sophia blushed. "Oh my God, you do! Look don't freak out everything is going to be fine you just be your awesome usual self and go and have fun—but not too much fun." The comment earned her a wicked grin from Sophia.

"Could you please go open the door? I want to him to be dazzled when he finally sees me."

"Yeah, because seeing me is going to turn him off?" Lindy asked faking hurt.

"You know that's not what I meant," she said clutching Lindy's hands. "You are also gorgeous, but could you please just open the door for me?"

"Anything for you." She left Sophia in her room to do breathing exercises she'd leaned in yoga class to calm herself and went to open the door for Yeager. She swung it open to reveal him dressed up for the evening with a bouquet of red roses in his hand looking more than a little nervous himself, which was strange to see since he always looked calm and collected. "Hey, Yeager," she greeted.

"Hey," he nodded at her. Lindy let him in and he stood looking uncomfortable in the middle of the living room. "Sophia will be out in a minute. Bonus points for bringing her her favorite flowers by the way." Yeager smiled looking relieved and visibly relaxed. She wanted to ask him about Tommy and what he might be keeping from her since she was sure it was work related but she decided against it. She didn't want to ruin Sophia and Yeager's night with talk of work and secrets.

Sophia came out of her room holding her sparkly clutch and looking much calmer than when Lindy had left her. She visibly brightened when she saw Yeager and even more so when she saw that he was holding flowers.

"Flowers, you bought me flowers? How thoughtful. How did you know I loved roses?"

Yeager shrugged and smiled warmly, "When I saw them I thought of you. I'm glad you like them."

"Just let me put them in some water and we'll go." She took them from Yeager and inhaled deeply while walking toward the kitchen.

Lindy squeezed Yeager's arm in encouragement. "So where are you taking her?"

"It's a surprise, but I'll tell you." He looked to make sure Sophia wasn't listening but she was busy looking in the cupboard under the sink for a vase. "I'm taking her to a Bohemian restaurant in Manhattan that I think she'll like."

"She's definitely going to like that," she said approvingly. Yeager seemed to know Sophia already.

"All right, I'm ready," Sophia trilled coming back into the living room.

"Okay, you kids have fun and don't stay out too late," Lindy called after them. Yeager gave her a funny look over his shoulder while Sophia just smiled and waved goodbye before Lindy shut the door after them.

She breathed out. She now had the apartment to herself. Sophia wasn't going to be back for another few hours and there was something she needed to do that she had already put off for too long. She headed into her room and opened the bottom drawer of her dresser. With slightly shaking hands she pulled out the tablet that Jake had given her that day at the train station.

In it he had told her was all of the information he had managed to find out about Sara. Although Lindy was desperate to know anything about Sara she was too afraid that this was just going to be another dead end. She was afraid that Jake was only taunting her and playing with her emotions like he had to get her to go to Hart Island. She sat on the edge of her bed with the tablet in her lap and just stared at it. She couldn't bring herself to power it on. The memories of the night Sara was abducted still haunted her.

She was suddenly there. It had been dark and raining hard making it necessary to turn on the windshield wipers. She remembered with perfect clarity everything that happened that night. The horror she had felt when she realized that her little sister was being kidnapped right in front of her. The helplessness and anger she had felt about not being able to get to her sister on time, and the desperation about not being able to find Sara after all this time.

She gave a shaky sigh she needed to do this, to see what was in this tablet even if it turned out not to be anything, to follow all of the leads even if they led nowhere. She needed to do it. She owed it to Sara for not being able to save her. She closed her eyes, steeling herself and reached out for the power button. Just as she was about to press it a knock sounded at the door. She jumped up and headed for the door annoyed with herself by how relieved she felt to have a distraction, at putting off the task just a little bit longer.

"Did you forget your keys?" she asked swinging the door open thinking it was Sophia.

But it wasn't her. It was Tommy.

Admittedly, she hadn't expected to have to talk to him so soon. He was leaning on the door jamb but straightened up when she opened the door. "Hey, um, can we talk?"

She tried to cross her arms but it was made awkward by the fact that she was still holding on to the tablet, having forgotten to leave it on her bed. His eyes went to it, but he didn't mention it.

"So now you want to talk?" He flinched at her tone as if she had slapped him. Lindy felt bad being so harsh with him, but not much. She was tired of being lied to and being kept in the dark. She just wanted someone to be honest with her. Was that really too much to ask considering everything she had gone through?

"I guess I deserve that." He sighed, "Look Lindy, I'm sorry." The pain was clear in his eyes and she felt her heart soften a little. But she wasn't going to accept his apology until he explained himself. "Can I come in? I'll tell you what you want to know."

"Everything?" She asked still not quite believing him.

"Everything."

She still felt angry but her curiosity had gotten the better of her and she stepped aside to let him through. As he brushed she caught a whiff of his cologne.

"Where's Sophia, is she at IRL?"

"No, she's out with Yeager." So that explained why he had taken off like that as soon as Catherine had announced that they could go home earlier. He was likely going to go get ready for his date, Tommy thought.

She sat down on the couch and gestured for him to take a seat, she had a feeling this was going to be a long conversation. Wordlessly he sat down across from her and closed his eyes as if steeling himself. She waited expectantly knowing he would say something eventually. It didn't take long.

"I'm in danger."

She felt jolted. She wasn't exactly sure what she had expected him to confess but it hadn't been that. Sure, he was a cop and he was always putting his life on the line. That was part of the job, but something in his voice told her that this danger was different, it was imminent, worse.

"From?" she prompted.

"Bubonic."

This was much worse than she had thought. He was studying her face as if to see how she would react to the news. "How do you know this? Are you sure?"

Tommy laughed bitterly, "He said that I was going to pay dearly for killing his girlfriend and that I was going to regret the day I was born. I'm really not sure how much clearer he could have been." He shrugged as if it were no big deal to hide the fact he was scared. Tommy Calligan was actually scared. He didn't believe in the boogeyman, but Bubonic came pretty close. Lindy looked at him the concern obvious on her face as if she could read him and maybe she could, it made him feel just a little bit better.

He told her everything, from Catherine's phone call that morning to the FBI agents coming in to investigate. She never once interrupted. When he was done it was quiet for a while. All they could hear were the faint sounds of street traffic coming from outside and the droplets of rain hitting the windowpanes. It had started to rain.

"I had no idea," Lindy said quietly. "That's why you were late today and why you were so distracted." She said it as a statement rather than a question. Tommy nodded. "I had no idea," she repeated. "I just made things worse by blowing up at you like that. I'm sorry," she said finally looking up at him. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, he hadn't come here to make her feel bad.

"It's fine."

"No," she said shaking her head. "It's not. I overreacted. It's just that I thought you were hiding something from me again and it made me angry, but why keep this from me?"

He shrugged. "I just didn't want you to worry or have anything else on you mind, you've seem pretty preoccupied yourself lately." She thought back to what he had shouted at her in the gym. _"I know that something's bothering you, but you keep shutting me out."_ He was right, but she didn't want to admit that. "You still could have told me."

Tommy didn't want to argue. "You're right I should have. It's just that this time I wasn't hiding something that affected you. I'm the one in danger, not you and while we're talking about it, I shouldn't have kept Operation Magnifly a secret from you either, but after I got to know you more and we became friends I didn't want to ruin that." Lindy was shocked. She hadn't expected Tommy to explain himself about this.

"Before, it was just a job for me. I was blinded by trying to catch Bubonic, but what I told you was true. It was before I really knew you. Before I knew what you were really like and you weren't just Lindy Sampson case file 20149 or my best friend's girlfriend. You were Lindy Sampson the girl I could trust. I got scared. I didn't want to lose you. I realize that's not an excuse for not telling you the truth, but that's my reason for doing it. If you asked me to do it now I wouldn't even dream of it." He paused to catch his breath. He looked at her. She didn't look angry, just a little sad. "I'm sorry, Lindy. I really am, for everything."

The tablet was gripped in her hands like a life preserver. Tommy held his breath waiting for her to say something.

"Thank you. For telling me. I needed to know. I accept your apology and I do forgive you, Tommy." She looked up at him, "But I can't lie to you and tell you that I trust you yet. I still feel hurt about it." She realized during his speech that she meant more to him than she had ever realized. She could tell he was genuinely sorry and that he genuinely cared about her. She knew she was being unfair, but she had been lied to so often that this was going to take time to get over. She just needed time.

He nodded understanding. He hadn't expected her to forgive him, but he needed her to know his side of the story.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked him.

"Sure."

"Why does Bubonic keep saying that you killed his girlfriend? He calls you murderers, why?"

Tommy went still. He really should have expected this question considering what they were talking about, but it still caught him off guard. He didn't really want to tell her. What would she think? It was an ugly part of his past, of his job, his life, but looking into those chocolate eyes that made him melt whenever he looked into them he found that he couldn't not tell her. He exhaled slowly.

"We've been trying to catch Bubonic for a long time now." He began, leaning forward. "You know as well as anyone what a dangerous criminal he is. He's manipulative and he likes to instill fear in people. You saw how at the Reconnoiter party at IRL it was all just a game to him. People were getting hurt and he didn't care." Tommy stopped trying to control the rising anger he felt inside him. Lindy looked at him anxiously, but said nothing. She still had a death grip on the tablet although Tommy doubted she noticed.

"About a year and a half ago," he began. "A few months before we found out about you, we were trying to find a way to get someone on the inside of The Outliers when a woman walked into the precinct and demanded to speak to the person in charge. She looked scared, but there was a determination about her. Catherine brought her into her office along with Ben and me. The woman told us she had worked for Bubonic from the very beginning, before he turned evil, helping him hack into what he needed. She was rather high up on the totem pole. However, she didn't know Bubonic's real identity or what he looked like because he always wears that stupid bird mask. He never revealed even to his lackeys who he really was and I guess it's with good reason considering she wanted to turn him in." He paused.

"Her name was Amanda Green." He said the name as if it pained him to say it and Lindy got the feeling that Amanda hadn't met with a good end. "In the beginning she had thought that Bubonic was brilliant but she slowly realized that he had turned into a monster. He was getting into more destructive projects, into things that could hurt innocent people. She didn't want to work for Bubonic anymore, she wanted him to go to jail and pay for the things he'd done, but she wanted to walk away free.

"So we made a deal with her. We'd keep her identity a secret so Bubonic or anyone else who was loyal to him wouldn't know what she'd done and she wouldn't get charged for any of the things she had been involved with while working for him. In return she would give us solid proof on things we needed on Bubonic, where Bubonic's headquarters was, and she would give us a lead on his identity. Amanda didn't know who he was and there was no way that Bubonic was going to tell her, but she knew someone who did."

"His girlfriend." He looked up at Lindy in surprise. He didn't know she'd known that, but her face was carefully neutral giving nothing away.

"Yes, his girlfriend. Her name was Melanie Saunders. Bubonic never told Amanda that was his girlfriend but Amanda could tell since Melanie was always dropping by and she and Bubonic always went off alone together. He never revealed Melanie's name in front of the other hackers, but Amanda heard it by chance one day when she was walking outside a room they had gone into. I had a suspicion that Amanda liked Bubonic and was jealous of his girlfriend and that's why she was helping us, but I never confirmed it. We tailed Melanie and found out where she lived and what places she liked to frequent, then we made our move." Tommy paused. Lindy knew that he was getting to the bad part, the reason why Bubonic was out to get him.

"We caught her as she was leaving her apartment and brought her down to the Unit where Ben and I interrogated her. We wanted to know who Bubonic was, where he lived, his past, everything. At first she claimed that she didn't know who we were talking about, but eventually we got her to admit that she was his girlfriend. I thought we were making some progress, but then she clammed up, she didn't want to betray him." Tommy's eyes were far off as if he were there in the interrogation room watching himself.

"I got angry. I told her that Bubonic was a monster who didn't care about anybody and that he only cared about himself. I could see that I was getting to her, hurting her. Ben was trying to calm me down and tried the good cop approach, but she wouldn't budge." Tommy sighed. "We were there for _hours._ I didn't see that she was withdrawing more and more into herself but Ben did and was telling me to back off but I couldn't. I wanted to catch the monster. I told her that if Bubonic was the one being questioned he would have turned her in without a second thought. She screamed that I was a liar and that he loved her and would never do that to her. I lost it. I yelled back, I threated her saying that she would go to jail for withholding information and helping Bubonic. Ben had finally had enough and dragged me out of the interrogation room. He went back in to talk to her alone but eventually gave up. She never even told us his real name.

"We put her in a holding cell for the night and we were going to continue with the interrogation the next day." Tommy put his head in his hands and looked up at her. Lindy could clearly see the guilt in his eyes.

"Tommy you don't have to tell me this much."

"It's okay, I want to. I need to." He continued. "I went to go get her the next morning and I found her in her cell…she had hung herself." He said the last past so softly that she had to strain herself to hear. She could only imagine the desperation and fear that Melanie must have felt that drove her to do what she did, but she must have known they weren't actually going to hurt her, Lindy thought. "I yelled for Ben and he was as horrified as I was if not more." Lindy could clearly see the image as if she were there that day. She could see Melanie hanging in her cell, Tommy's horror stricken face, and Ben rushing to see what was going on. "He helped me get her down, but there was nothing more we could do for her, she was dead.

"I didn't kill her, but I think I pushed her too hard. I was out of line. Even Ben thought so. Maybe she didn't want us to try to get any more information out of her and she thought that the only way for that to happen was to make sure she never had anything to say again. Maybe she thought that I was right and she couldn't stand the thought of Bubonic betraying her. I'll never know and I can never apologize for what I did."

"Oh, Tommy," she couldn't think of anything better to say.

"Bubonic didn't find out until it was too late. Somehow, he found out that Amanda was involved. We have no idea how maybe she slipped up and said something." Tommy swallowed. "He killed her."

Tommy sat back in the armchair. "And now you know why Bubonic is after me. He has a grudge against the whole Cyber Crimes Unit, but it's mostly directed at me and Ben because we were the officers interrogating Melanie, but now that Ben's gone he's only after me." It was quiet for a while Tommy having finished and maybe even reliving the terrible memories. "Do you think that it's your fault?" Lindy asked quietly.

Tommy looked up at the ceiling and sighed. "I don't know what to think. I admit that I did push her too hard. But the reason that ultimately pushed Melanie to make her decision I'll never know. But I do know that I can't let guilt keep taking over my life, dwelling on the past, torturing myself with the what ifs. One can drive themselves crazy doing that. But if I don't get past them I can never live a normal life, I can't look to the future." The words hit Lindy hard because that was exactly what she was letting herself do. She was always torturing herself with the what ifs of Sara's abduction. There had been odds working against her that night that hadn't allowed her to reach Sara on time, it had been out of her control. "Can I ask you something now?"

Lindy nodded. It seemed like this was going to be a night full of confessions. "What's that?" Tommy asked pointing his chin toward the tablet Lindy had clutched in her hands. She had completely forgotten about it. She was hesitant to tell him, but he had told her everything she had wanted to know and more. There was no reason to keep the tablet a secret and she suddenly felt terrified to see what was in the tablet alone.

"Jake gave this to me."

Tommy froze. "When?" Then a thought struck him. "You were holding it at the train station and on the ride over to the hospital the day we arrested Jake." She nodded. His stomach twisted a little at the thought of her still having something that Jake had given her or had once belonged to him. "What's in it?"

Lindy bit her lip. "In it is supposed to be everything that he managed to find out about Sara." Tommy's eyebrows were in danger of disappearing into his hairline.

"Did he-?" He stopped when he saw the expression on Lindy's face. "What's wrong?"

She looked down. "I actually don't know what's in it. I haven't looked yet," she mumbled. This surprised Tommy. It was unlike Lindy. Sara was her one true weakness. She was always tracking down whatever leads she could find on her. And in her hands was supposed to be the biggest lead of all and she hadn't looked at it yet.

"Lindy, look at me," he said softly. She did slowly and found herself trapped in his gaze. "I want you to know that whatever's in there I will help you with it."

"It's just that I'm scared at what I'll find." Tommy knew it was hard for her to admit that.

"Do you want to look?" She nodded. "Do it. I'll be right here with you."

Her hand hovered over the power button but then dropped back down. "I can't."

He got up and sat down right beside her, his arm against hers. "You can," he told her and gently took her hand. "We'll do it together." It flashed him back to when Lindy was undercover at the hospital. He hadn't been able to do what he needed to do to get that chip that could save hundreds of lives. Lindy had taken his hand and given him the strength he needed. He wanted to lend her the same strength now that she had lent him then.

Together they pushed the power button. There was only one file in the whole tablet labeled: Sara. They clicked on it.

Lindy took a deep breath. On the screen an image of an empty parking lot came up. It looked like it had been taken from a security camera. "What is this?" Tommy wondered aloud. Lindy shrugged, her eyes roaming down to a numeration on the bottom right of the screen, Tommy's eyes followed. He realized that it was a date and time. "Is that-?"

"This video was taken on the night that Sara disappeared," Lindy said breathlessly. There was a movement on the screen and a van came into view. Lindy knew that van anywhere. It haunted her in her nightmares. "That's it!" she exclaimed. "That's the van that Sara was taken in." The side door to the van opened and a girl came out.

It was Sara.

She closed the door and the van drove away. Lindy sucked in a breath. "She's alive," she whispered trying to contain her excitement although she was thoroughly confused. She'd never felt like Sara was dead and here was proof that she wasn't wrong. Suddenly another car pulled up behind Sara and a boy rushed out.

Lindy immediately recognized him. It was Sara's old boyfriend. On the screen they hugged and kissed. "Now we'll be safe. Now, Lindy will be safe," her sister said before the video ended.

Tommy looked over at Lindy who was completely still, she didn't even seem to be breathing. How does one react to the news that the loved one you thought was taken from you is not only alive but is not being held against her will like you had thought all these years?

"Lindy?"

She stood up suddenly letting the tablet clatter to the floor. Without a backward glance she ran out of the apartment.

"Lindy!" Tommy called, but she kept running. He swore and ran after her. Outside it was raining hard and fast creating puddles that reflected the streetlights everywhere. He looked both left and right but he couldn't see Lindy anywhere. "Damn it!" he yelled and scrambled into his car figuring he could cover ground faster that way, she couldn't have gotten very far. He decided to go left.

She was running blindly, the raindrops stinging her face. She didn't know where she was going and she didn't care as long as she got away from _them_. The ground was slick with rainwater and her feet kept sliding, but she kept running, knowing they were closing in on her and it was only a matter of time before they reached her. But she was so tired of fighting them.

All these years, her sister was alive, but she obviously didn't want to be found. A choked sob escaped her. Her tears were mixing with the rain making the world in front of her turn into a colored blur. She ran into an alleyway and fell to her knees. She felt like a leaf in a river being carried away by the swift current. She was finally letting herself feel, but the world was spinning and she couldn't get a foothold anymore, everything was washing over her at once.

She finally let her demons come and get her.

Tommy was looking both left and right trying to catch sight of Lindy. He had his window open despite the rain in case he heard her. He drove past an alley when he thought he heard something. He slammed on the breaks and backed up, not bothering to check behind him for cars since the street was deserted. He peered into the gloomy darkness and could barely make out the shape of a kneeling figure, then he heard the sound again. It was a tortured sound and he knew who was making it. He had heard it once before from her when she had discovered Ben had been killed. It was the only time he had ever seen her become undone. He killed the ignition and rushed out of the car.

"Lindy!" he called, running toward her. The heart wrenching sobs that were racking her body were clearer now. She was kneeled on the wet ground with her arms wrapped around herself as if to keep herself from falling apart. It tore at Tommy to see her like this and he knew that this had more to do with than just Sara. Sara had only been the last straw, he knew something had been bothering her but he didn't think it would lead to this.

He was now standing in front of her. He could see that she was completely soaked, not that she seemed to care. He took off his leather jacket and draped it over her shoulders. He had a hoody underneath although he knew it wasn't going to keep him dry for long. He crouched down in front of her. "Lindy, are you okay? C'mon we gotta get you somewhere dry," he said tugging on her arm trying to get her to stand up.

"No," she jerked her arm away. "I want to stay here, just go away. I want to be alone."

"No. You've been alone with your feelings for too long. I'm not leaving you like this."

She looked at him with some of her old fire in her eyes although he could see it was a little dimmed. "Just go, Tommy. Leave me here," she managed to say before another sob escaped her.

He crouched down and gently took her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him. He could see it all there. The fear, the anger, the guilt, and above all a sense of hopelessness that he would never associate with Lindy. "Lindy," he could hear the concern in his own voice. "Please tell what's wrong."

She was so tired of keeping it all in that the words tumbled out before she could stop them. "Everything," she cried. "It's just too much." She dissolved into tears again. He sat down next to her and wrapped his arms around her while she cried into his shoulder. He knew that he shouldn't be this close to her that he needed to keep her at a distance, but the need to protect her was too strong. Even if it was from herself. "Let's start at the beginning," he told her gently when her crying had died down.

Sara had always been the beginning for her so she started there. "I couldn't get to her on time," she said miserably. "I've been trying to find her for almost four years now. Following dead end leads and driving myself crazy with how I could have prevented her from getting kidnapped, but it was all just for show, it was all just a lie," she said, anger replacing the hopelessness in her voice. "All these years and she never once reached out to me, even just to tell me that she was okay. I didn't even know for sure if she was alive. Do you have any idea how that feels?"

He didn't. All he could do was tighten his arms around her and try to comfort her. "Do you have any idea what she was trying to keep you safe from?" Tommy asked quietly.

"I don't know. I was always the one trying to keep _her_ safe. So much that she thought I was smothering her sometimes."

"I know that the way she handled things wasn't fair to you. To have you think all these years that she had been kidnapped while you just watched helplessly..." He trailed off he was actually angry at how Sara had made Lindy suffer for so long but he was trying to make sense of it, at least for Lindy's sake. "She must have thought that someone was after her who would be after you too. She thought that she had to leave to keep you safe, but not just by running away, that would have been different. She made it seem like she had been kidnapped because she needed to make sure that you wouldn't be able to follow her. She needed to leave in a way that you wouldn't be able to find her and so far it's worked."

"I just wish she had trusted me enough with her secret," Lindy said miserably.

"It was probably better that you never knew in case anyone ever came around to ask about her. If you thought that she had been kidnapped, you'd have no way to tell anyone where she was because you don't know." It seemed like Sara had it all planned out. He had to give her credit for this master plan and would try to not judge her for what she had done. Hopefully she had a good reason for all the suffering she had caused her older sister.

"I know you're right," Lindy said, then paused. "I can't believe I just said that." Tommy couldn't help but smile. "But it's almost been four years. If only she could have given me a sign that she was okay I'd feel better."

"I promise you we're going to find her," Tommy told her resolutely. Lindy finally pulled away from him and looked at him with a mix of appreciation and wariness.

"I thought cops weren't supposed to make promises?"

"I'm not making it as a cop," he said looking into her eyes. "I'm making it as Tommy."

She smiled and it made Tommy's heart skip a beat. He was happy that he had been able to make her smile despite the situation. "Thank you."

Slowly Tommy's smile faded. "That's not all that's bothering you is it?"

Lindy shook her head. She quickly told him her guilt over everyone Jake had killed before she could talk herself out of it. When she was finally done she felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders, but Tommy's eyes had grown darker and as she talked. When she was done he said, "I can't believe you actually think that. How could you possibly think that it was all your fault?"

"It is, Tommy! He was after me and he tried to get rid of anyone close to me and if it wasn't for me Ben would have never been at that apartment, he would have never died." She was close to tears again, but she held them back.

"You can't know that for sure, Lindy. You called Ben to the apartment because you thought your best friend was in danger. Don't you see that Jake was manipulating you from the very beginning? He was taking advantage of your goodness. Absolutely nobody blames you for what happened because we know it's not your fault. Why would it be your fault that a stalker chose you as a target? It's horrible stuff that happens that you have no control over. So please I'm telling you. Stop blaming yourself. It. Is. Not. Your. Fault," he enunciated the last sentence to make sure it stuck. "Okay?"

She looked away, not trusting herself to speak. Tommy turned her face to him with the palm of his hand. "Lindy, answer me." She looked into his hazel eyes and saw something there. It was faith and hope. For her. She knew in her heart that he was right. She thought back to what he had said at her apartment earlier that night _. I can't let guilt keep taking over my life, dwelling on the past, torturing myself with the what if._ _If I don't get past them I can never live a normal life I can't look to the future._ She looked at him and smiled and Tommy knew that she was going to be

"Okay."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: You guys are so encouraging. I promise I'll finish this story, even if it takes longer than I thought. Thank you to those that answered my question. If anyone else wants to add what they think I'd love to read it.**

 **If you guys want to know when I though Tommy realized his feelings for Lindy I think it was in the YOLO episode when they were saving those kids. Even before the psychic pointed it out. There was just really good chemistry between the two. I think Tommy was in love with Lindy in the SOS episode and then they kissed... I definitely agree that he was completely furious when he was fighting off that creep. Anyway here's the new chapter, sorry it took so long, the chapters are getting longer, more action, etc. Tindy's coming guys, patience. Hopefully it'll be worth the wait.**

"Do you want another drink?" Tommy looked up from the empty beer bottle he was holding into Sophia's eyes.

He smiled at her. "Sure." She immediately set down a glass filled with a red drink that smelled fruity. Clearly she'd had it ready for him. He looked down at it in disbelief and then back up at her. "Are you serious? I just wanted a beer."

She waved away his protest. "I'm sure a beer is supposed to make you look manlier or something while you sit here and wait for Lindy, but this tastes a lot better."

"It's a girly looking drink."

"Now you're just being sexist."

He purposely took a large swig to shut her up but nearly spit it out. He managed to swallow it, feeling it burn the whole way down. He coughed, trying to clear his throat, bringing tears to his eyes. Sophia just watched him with a wide satisfied grin on her face. "What was that?" he finally managed to ask when he had stopped coughing. "That was so not what I expected."

"Things aren't always what you expect them to be, Tommy. That is a house special, but what we put in it is a secret."

"Well, damn, you could have warned me."

"Nah, it wouldn't have been as fun," she giggled. "Do you want another one?"

"Hell yeah." She quickly whipped up another one and took away his empty glass, then made her way to the opposite side of the counter to attend to another customer. Tommy took another-smaller- swig of the house special and continued to wait for Lindy.

The place was packed. Tonight, Sophia had reopened IRL after closing it for nearly a month while she recovered. It was a Saturday night and people were looking for a good place to hang out and IRL being one of the best places to go for a night out, word had spread quickly. Lindy had invited him for the opening, but still had yet to show up.

"Great place, huh?" Tommy looked to see a curly haired man sit down on the stool beside him. He looked familiar although Tommy wasn't sure from where.

"Yeah, it's a lot of fun."

"I'm not even sure why I came." The man said, taking a swig of his beer. Tommy eyed it feeling self-conscious about his own drink. "My friends convinced me to come for a night out, but they're all out on the dance floor right now." He nodded in that general direction although there were so many bodies tightly packed together Tommy wasn't sure who his friends were supposed to be.

Tommy just shrugged. He wasn't sure why this guy was trying to talk to him. He should just go and hang out with his friends instead of complaining to him about it. "Why don't you go join them?"

The man shrugged, uncertainly. "I don't know. I'm not much of a dancer which is why I'm not sure why I even came." Tommy didn't know what to say to that so he just took another sip of his drink. The man's eyes travelled to it but he didn't comment on it, for which Tommy was grateful. He didn't need anyone telling him how girly his drink looked. Instead the guy said, "Are you waiting for someone?"

Tommy sighed. Clearly this guy wasn't going to move on. "Yeah, I am." Tommy didn't elaborate.

"Well, isn't she a sight." The guy gestured behind Tommy. Tommy turned to see what the guy was looking at. He saw a pretty brunet walk into the club. The colorful lights around her pulsing, making her seem hypnotic. There was more than one guy's lustful eye on her and more than one disdainful look from the women around, but she was oblivious to it all.

"She's beautiful," Tommy half whispered to himself. The brunet saw Tommy and her red lipsticked lips curved into a smile, making his pulse jump. She made her way towards him, weaving around people until she was finally in front of him and said, "Sorry I'm late."

"Don't worry about it."

"What have you been doing?"

"I've just been talking to…" The words trailed off as he turned and saw the stool that the guy had been sitting on was empty. "Never mind." He had never even gotten the guy's name. He gestured for Lindy to sit down. She took the stool to his right and flagged down one of the bartenders.

"Whatever you do, don't order the house special," Tommy warned. Lindy grinned, looking down at the red drink in his hand, she obviously knew about it already.

"The usual, Lindy?" A buff looking bartender asked her.

"No. I want the orange twist, tonight." It was in front of her in less than a minute. "So, how are you?" Tommy asked her.

"Still shocked," she said, turning toward him. "It's kind of hard to get over the fact that your little sister has been able to reach out to you all this time and hasn't… making you think she was kidnapped…" She sighed, trying to get a grip on her emotions. "Look," she said, twirling the straw in her drink. "I'm sorry about last night. I… I lost control. It was all just too much for me. I let everything build up inside and I just couldn't handle it anymore. I think that's why I ran off. I was trying to run away from what I was feeling instead of facing it and it finally caught up to me. I'm just sorry you had to see me like that."

Tommy couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Lindy," there was something in the way he said it that made her look at him. " _Don't apologize_. You had every right to do what you did. Most people would have broken down a long time ago. It's a wonder you held up as long as you did. You have been through so much. More than most people would in a lifetime," he leaned closer to her. "There is _nothing_ to be ashamed of, Lindy. You're one of the strongest people I know, so please don't apologize for losing control once. Everyone should allow themselves to feel whatever it is they're feeling. That's all you did, you just let yourself feel. You needed to and it's perfectly fine. I just want you to feel okay now."

"And I do," she said smiling, "Thanks to you." She took a deep breath as if to gather her courage. "Thank you, Tommy. For everything. For telling me about your past, for seeing that video with me, for going after me, and for taking it when I took out my anger on you. Just thanks for being there."

"Don't even worry about it, Lindy." Tommy said a little uncomfortable with all the praise. "I'm just glad I could help you."

Lindy took a sip of her drink. "So," she said, changing the subject with a change in her tone. "That girl over there has been eyeing you like you're a piece of meat for the last ten minutes." Tommy turned to see who she was talking about. A few feet away a stunning blonde in a slightly too tight dress and heels was looking at Tommy indeed like he was a piece of meat and she was hungry. When she saw that he had noticed her she blew him a kiss. Tommy turned back to face Lindy. He could feel his face getting warm and hoped that the dim lighting in the club was enough to hide his blush.

"She's hot." Lindy said, with an amused look on her face.

"Yeah," he said, avoiding her gaze by looking down at his drink, "But she's not my type."

"Tommy Calligan has a type? This I have to hear," she said, leaning forward enough that the smell of her pomegranate shampoo wafted over to him. He loved that smell.

How was he supposed to tell her that his type was sitting right in front of him with a drink in her hand, her wide brown eyes both expectant and challenging? "Well," he began hesitantly. "She's gotta be smart, not easily afraid-"

"And blonde."

They both looked up to see Connor with George beside him. Connor had managed to catch onto the tail end of their conversation. "Because you're only into blondes, right?" Tommy grit his teeth. Had it been too much to hope for that Connor had forgotten their exchange back at the precinct the night they'd come back from the junk yard?

"Right," he darted a glance over at Lindy, but she was too busy being squeezed by George, her face pressed against his chest to comment. George was going on about how much he missed her now that they didn't see each other every day.

"Hey, handsome." Lindy peered through George's arms to see the girl who'd been openly staring at Tommy earlier now beside him, touching his bicep. George immediately released Lindy as if to show the woman that he wasn't with Lindy in any way. He made a sound between a sigh and a purr. The blonde winked at him, making George blush, before she turned back to Tommy. "How about you and me go dance?" Tommy darted his eyes between the blonde and Lindy, looking uncomfortable. Connor noticing this looked smug.

"I uh-," Tommy started.

"Oh, are you with her?" she tilted her head toward Lindy. The blonde was alert enough to know exactly what she was doing but had enough alcohol in her system that she might have a few regrets in the morning.

"No, but-"

"Then let's go dance." She pulled Tommy to his feet, somehow managing not to scratch him with one of her red painted nails that were sharpened to a point, and pushed him ahead of her toward the dance floor. She shot Lindy a challenging, triumphant look, behind Tommy's back and headed toward the dance floor clutching Tommy's arm with one of her taloned hands.

"What was that all about?" Lindy asked, smoothing down her hair George had messed up, eyeing the couple now on the dance floor. Connor and George exchanged a look before George answered. "She seems to think that you're together."

"Where would she get an idea like that?"

Connor having no interest in being a part of this conversation went off to find Sophia, while George sat in the stool Tommy had just vacated. "No idea," he said, with a knowing look that Lindy didn't really care for. "What?" she asked, feeling slightly annoyed.

"Nothing. Tell me, what's new with you? I haven't seen much of you since we're not working together right now. Do you have any idea how boring it is there without you? I actually have to work now. You have to go back before I actually lose my mind." He brought a hand on either side of his head, mimicking his head exploding.

Lindy rolled her eyes at him. "Don't worry. I'll be back in another week. Sophia's doing better, but I just found out some stuff about Sara and work right now would just be a distraction."

"What did you find out?" George asked, alert. She quickly told him about the tablet Jake had given her and what she had seen on it, leaving out the part of her meltdown.

"That's tough, Linds," he said when she'd finished. "I'm so sorry. I can only imagine what you're feeling." He gave her a big hug, when he released her he said, "But I think Tommy was right. There must have been a really bad reason Sara did what she did. She probably thought that whoever was after her would try to get to you to get to her, so to protect you she left and took herself off the radar so that you wouldn't be able to track her since she knows that you can hack and so that whoever was after her wouldn't be able to find her either. If anyone came to question you you'd only be able to tell them that she was kidnapped because that's what you thought." He paused. "It's actually kind of brilliant if you think about it. Her being able to stay off the grid this long…" he trailed off when he saw the look on Lindy's face, it was one full of sadness. "I'm sorry," he said, realizing how insensitive he sounded.

She shrugged. "I just wish I knew what it was that made her leave." She sighed, clearly frustrated. George decided to change the subject to get her mind off the matter, although he knew that with Lindy her sister was never off her mind for very long.

"So looks like you and Tommy are talking again."

"Yeah, we've been hanging out recently." Which was one way to put it. She looked out at the dance floor to see an uncomfortable looking Tommy shifting from foot to foot.

"It kind of looks like he has to go to the bathroom," George said, making Lindy laugh.

"Unfortunately, I think that's how he actually dances." The blonde was dancing in what Lindy could only guess was supposed to be a sexy way, but the woman was so drunk it just looked like she was just wiggling around to fix a wedgie. Lindy cringed internally at the sight the two made.

"So you've forgiven him for what he did?"

She nodded. "I have and he's starting to gain my trust back."

George smiled again in a way that made Lindy think that he wasn't telling her something. "What?" she asked, starting to feel irritated.

"Nothing. I'm just glad you guys are talking again. He's a great guy."

"Yeah," she said, remembering how the night before how he'd gone after her and stayed with her despite the rain. "He is."

She saw Tommy making his way back to them with a pained look on his face. "Hey, Tommy-boy, where's your new friend?" George asked, trying to keep a straight face.

"She's not my friend," he said automatically. "She had too much to drink. I'm pretty sure she ran to the bathroom. I don't think I'll be seeing her anymore tonight, at least not for a while."

"Are you sure she didn't run away because of your dancing?" George asked, deadpan. Tommy glared at him in a way that would wither flowers, making George laugh nervously. He got up and moved to Lindy's other side. "Help," he whispered to her.

Tommy sat back down at his spot and gulped back most of his drink, feeling it burn the whole way down, it tasted slightly more bitter than he remembered. "My dancing is fine." Lindy snorted. "Is it really that bad?" he asked her, surprised.

"Well…yeah, it is," she exchanged a look with George and he knew that some kind of unspoken communication had just passed through them. "C'mon, we're all gunna dance," she and George each took one of his arms propelling him toward the dance floor.

"No, no, no. I'm done dancing. I didn't even want to dance in the first place," he protested, but they just ignored him, continuing to propel him toward the mass of dancing bodies. He stumbled a little along the way, he frowned.

"You just have to move along to the music, let it take you." Lindy said, raising her voice to be heard over the pounding club music. She began to move in time to the music, her arms swirling over her head, her hips moving from side to side, it was hypnotic. George had somehow gotten another girl to dance with him, leaving him and Lindy to themselves. The multi-colored lights moving overhead lit up the dancers, they seemed to focus more on Lindy, making her look enchanting. The music seemed to be getting louder, the words of the song blurring together.

Tommy swayed from side to side letting the music take him like Lindy had said. He felt himself stumble a little, a bubble of laughter escaped him. Lindy looked at him sharply. "This is actually fun," he told her.

Lindy's face took on a look of concern. "Tommy, are you okay?"

"I've never been better." At least that's what he thought he said, his tongue felt kind of heavy.

"Tommy?" her voice sounded far away. That was weird had she moved away from him? He tried looking for her to reassure her that he was fine, but she was lost among the sea of people. His limbs felt heavy. The lights swirling above were making him dizzy, everything was turning into a blur, his vision going in and out. "Tommy!" her words sounded distorted, making him feel as if he were underwater. He felt a bolt of fear shoot through him, this wasn't normal, something was wrong. "Tommy!" he couldn't answer her to tell her to get help, that something was wrong with him.

Suddenly, he felt weightless, as if he were floating. The colorful lights above him were getting closer, turning into a blob. The darkness was creeping in on him from the sides. He tried to fight it, to bring himself back to the surface, but his lids felt heavy, he couldn't move.

"Tommy?" that was the last thing he heard before the darkness took him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Congrats to the one who figured out exactly who the person that drugged Tommy was :)**

 **Sorry I've had a busy few weeks and couldn't update, but like I said before I will finish this story even if it takes a while.**

Tommy woke up slowly with a shooting pain behind his eyes and a major headache. His thoughts felt completely muddled. He blinked hard trying to get his vision to focus. Slowly, he managed to make out a bright water colored painting across from him, some kind of scene depicting an ocean at sunset, it was pretty. His eyes roamed around the room trying to get his bearings. There was a small desk, a bookshelf stocked with both books and CDs, and a few beanbag chairs scattered around. He realized he was lying down on a black leather couch and since he could hear pounding club music, although a little muffled, he knew he was still at IRL. He must be in some kind of backroom that Sophia used to hang out in when the club got to be too much.

His mouth was dry. He felt like he had a freaking hangover. How much had he had to drink? He tried to remember why he was here in the backroom instead of back at the bar, but his memories were foggy at best. He tried to get up, but immediately a wave of nausea hit him.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A voice said, cutting through the fog in his mind. Tommy turned to see Yeager sitting uncomfortably in a corner of the room on a beanbag chair. Somehow, Tommy had missed him while searching the room. Apparently all that Sophia had to sit on in this room were beanbag chairs and the couch that Tommy was stretched out on.

Tommy groaned, holding his head. "What the hell happened?"

"What was the last thing you remember?" Yeager asked instead. Tommy cast his mind back to the events of earlier that night. He'd been waiting for Lindy when Sophia had given him that drink and then that weird guy had talked to him just before Lindy had arrived. He remembered feeling uncomfortable and a lot of dancing and then...nothing.

"I was out on the dancefloor with George and Lindy." He felt a rising sense of panic as he realized this. Had something happened to them? To her? "Wait, Lindy? Where's Lindy? Is she okay?" He started to sit up, ready to go out and find her, but Yeager was there in a flash despite having been sitting pretty close to the ground. He placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"She's fine. Don't worry about her. She's upstairs with George right now checking the club's security footage trying to figure out who drugged you."

Tommy leaned back against the couch trying to process this information. She was safe. "Here, drink this," Yeager said, uncapping a water bottle and holding it out to him. Tommy took it gratefully. Although his hand was a little shaky he managed to down a few sips. He was handing it back to Yeager when something he'd told him finally registered.

"Did you just say I was drugged?" He rubbed his head and blinked repeatedly, trying to assuage the feeling of his head pounding.

"Yes, you were drugged," Yeager said, his face grave. That would explain why he had felt so disoriented when he first woke up. It certainly made sense. "Someone put something in your drink and then you collapsed on the dancefloor. You scared Lindy, and George," he rolled his eyes at the memory. "You scared him too. You pretty much made him hyperventilate so he wasn't much help in picking you up off the floor and getting you back here. I had to go and help Lindy."

"I didn't see you around earlier. Where were you?" Tommy questioned.

"Around." By the way Yeager wasn't quite meeting his eyes he knew that he had been with Sophia. Tommy didn't want to make him more uncomfortable than he already was. What he did with Sophia was his business, not his. They stayed silent for a while. The only noise was the club's music that filtered in through the walls.

"I just didn't think that he would come after me so soon," Tommy said finally. They both knew who was behind what happened.

"Neither did I," Yeager said, fixing him with a look. "But I guess that's why he did it. We weren't expecting it and you know that he lives for the unexpected." Tommy knew well what Yeager's look meant, but he didn't acknowledge it. He didn't want to have this discussion again. He knew that Yeager was right, but in his mind to have a protective detail was like admitting that he was scared. It meant that Bubonic had control over him and there was no way Tommy Calligan was going to give Bubonic that satisfaction.

The door to the room swung open revealing a worried looking Lindy with George, Sophia, and Connor in tow. "Good, you're awake," Lindy said, giving him a small smile despite how uneasy she looked. Damn him he had probably scared the hell out of her collapsing like he had.

"Yeah, I'm awake," he mumbled. He wanted to talk to her but he didn't feel like he had much energy anymore. Whatever the hell Bubonic had given him, it was strong. Yeager seemed to sense this and asked the question that was on his mind for him. "So what did you find?"

Lindy took a deep breath as if to gather her courage, but George piped up before she could say anything. "Lindy said that you'd told her that you had been talking to someone?" he directed his question at Tommy. Tommy nodded feeling sick to his stomach both from the drug that was still in his system and from the fact that he had been so careless, making it easy for Bubonic to get to him.

"I think he sent someone to do it for him," Yeager said from where he now stood at Sophia's side.

George and Lindy exchanged a glance. She sighed. Clearly she did not like what she was about to say. "No, it was Bubonic himself. He did it." Her voice was firm and she looked absolutely confident that it had been Bubonic himself who had drugged Tommy, but there was no way for her to know that for sure.

"Like him in disguise?" Tommy managed to get the words out. "It could be. But I doubt that he would show up personally. He's too smart for that," No, he was arrogant Lindy thought bitterly.

She should tell them what she knew. She had had her reasons for keeping the fact that she had seen Bubonic's face a secret before, but not anymore especially now that he was endangering Tommy life.

She glanced at Tommy. He didn't look like he was in condition to hear what she knew. At least not right now. He looked like he was about to pass out again. "Yeah, maybe it was him in disguise," Lindy said finally, deciding to tell him the truth later when he was up for it. George stared at her but said nothing.

Tommy sensed that Lindy wasn't telling him something and the way George looked at her confirmed it, but he was too tired to ask her what it was. He just wanted to get home and get some rest. He would ask her what was on her mind when the drug was out of his system.

"Why does this keep happening?" Sophia asked everyone at large, her arms flailing at her sides dramatically. Connor patted her arm, comfortingly. "I thought we were past this psycho-craziness after Jake." The room became quiet. They all just wanted to forget that Jake Bolin had ever come into their lives.

"We'll talk more about this later," Yeager said assuring Sophia, but giving Lindy a pointed look. He felt like she was keeping something from them too, but looking at Tommy he knew he needed to get him home. Lindy nodded, agreeing.

Yeager grabbed one of Tommy's arms and put it around his shoulder. Connor and Lindy both stepped up ready to take Tommy's other arm. They both looked at each other, annoyed.

"I'll help you," Connor told Yeager, starting to reach toward Tommy.

Yeager looked him up and down. "I think Lindy should help me."

Connor crossed his arms looking offended. "What, you think I'm weaker than her?"

Yeager's lips twitched as if he were trying hard not to smile. "I'm saying I think she can handle him better than you can." He turned towards Lindy. "So, will you help me take him out to the car?"

She glanced quickly at Connor. He did not look pleased, but she didn't feel bad about it. She looked at Tommy. He had already fallen asleep or had passed out, she wasn't sure. "I'll help." She quickly stepped past Connor who was now staring daggers at her and draped Tommy's other arm over her shoulder. She knew full well that Yeager didn't just want her help with Tommy. He wanted to talk to her. Fine, she would just get it over with. As they made their way out George reached out and squeezed her arm, smiling at her reassuringly. He knew why Yeager wanted her alone too.

They stepped out onto the main club area where everyone was back to dancing and getting drunk as if nothing had happened earlier. As they emerged outside of the club a few people heading in snickered at what they thought was the sight of a man so drunk he couldn't even walk upright and had to have his friends support him. Lindy and Yeager shot them murderous glares and they quickly looked away, picking up their pace before disappearing into the club.

Somewhere during the short trip to the car Tommy's head had lolled onto Lindy's shoulder. She could feel his warm breath on her neck giving her goosebumps.

"Hold on to him while I open the door." Yeager told her. Lindy held Tommy steady as Yeager opened the car door and then took Tommy himself easing him into the passenger seat of the car ducking Tommy's head with his hand so that it wouldn't hit the roof of the car. It reminded her of all the cop shows she'd watched. Lindy smiled. "Force of habit?"

Yeager realized what he had done and chuckled. "Yeah, I guess so." He shut the door and turned expectantly toward Lindy. "Thank you for helping me bring out Tommy. Now down to business. You know exactly who the person in that video is, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do." She didn't elaborate.

"Well, why are you so sure that the person who drugged Tommy is Bubonic himself? You agreed that it could be him in disguise but I can see that you don't believe that. I know that you usually go with your gut on this stuff, but we can't do that in this case. If it's Bubonic we need cold hard proof." She glanced at Tommy. His head was resting against the window, his eyes closed. She could see his chest rise and fall with every breath he took clearly asleep. Good.

"I know that it's Bubonic himself because I've seen him without his mask before."

There was a shocked silence as Yeager tried to process what she'd just said. "When did you see him?" he finally managed to ask. "Bubonic goes through great lengths to hide his face. From what I know even when you were going to work for him he didn't reveal it." Right, Operation Magnifly. She felt a stab of annoyance thinking about it. "The only other chance you would have had to see him—when any of us would have had a chance to see him was when he tried to blow this place up." He jerked a thumb behind him at Sophia's club. Lindy could see the gears in Yeager's mind turning and knew he was going to figure it out.

"You said you didn't see him when you went down into the boiler room. You said you just found the phone down there to deactivate the bomb, unless… you lied." His face turned serious. He had figured it out.

"I did." She couldn't help feeling guilty, but she'd had her reasons for not saying anything before.

"Why didn't you tell us? We're on the same side, Lindy."

She looked him right in the eye. "I didn't say anything because he said that you were all hiding something from me. And he was right."

Yeager closed his eyes. He wanted to be angry at her but he couldn't. Even though he hadn't been personally involved with the events leading up to Lindy's arrest, he knew it couldn't have been easy for her to find out that she had been used by the man she'd loved or the friend she had trusted with her life, and there was no way he could imagine what she had gone through with her sister only to find out it had all been a lie. No, he couldn't tell her anything.

"You know Tommy's sorry about what happened right? He's never going to use you ever again."

All she could do was nod. She thought back to last night's confessions. She believed what Tommy had told her and she believed Yeager now.

"But now the story's changed," Yeager continued. "Bubonic's after Tommy and he's not going to stop until he's dead. We need every lead we can get and this is the biggest one we've had in a long time. With the club's security footage we might actually be able to ID him and it could help us catch him once and for all before he strikes again."

She knew what Bubonic was capable of and that he was out to get Tommy, but hearing Yeager say it out loud like that it fully sunk in that if Bubonic succeeded Tommy would be gone. She felt a surge of anger go through her. She had already had so much taken from her. She was not going to let Tommy be taken away too. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys sooner. Do whatever you have to do, Yeager. I don't want Bubonic to get anywhere near Tommy." Then something occurred to her. "Wait, why doesn't Tommy have a protective detail? He's in _danger_ and from _Bubonic_ of all people. Didn't Catherine think that one of her best cop should be protected?"

"Catherine was going to put him on one but he refused. He's stubborn like that."

"Yeah he is." She thought of all the times he had butted in or tried to convince her otherwise on what she had her heart set to do. He knew exactly how to get under her skin. "I want to help, Yeager. I want to help catch Bubonic."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea." Tommy would kill him if he let Lindy get involved in another case, especially one having to do with Bubonic. "Besides, I don't think Tommy's going to be very happy when I tell him how we know for sure we can ID Bubonic's face."

Lindy bit her lip. "Let me tell him that, please. He deserves to hear it from me." She didn't want him hearing it from anyone else. It's the least she could do after everything he had told her even though he hadn't had to. Lindy could see the internal struggle on Yeager's face, but finally he relented. "Deal."

She knew Tommy was going to be furious because she had kept this from him. No doubt about it. "He'll get over it, Lindy" Yeager said softly as if reading her thoughts. "He always does." She felt like Yeager was trying to tell her something by the way he was looking between her and Tommy's sleeping form in the car, but she didn't know what.

"Let's hope so," she said instead.

"I have to get going. I gotta get Tommy home. I'm pretty sure I'll be seeing you on Monday though." She nodded, agreeing. "I'll come by tomorrow to get the security footage from Sophia and to pick up Tommy's car." He shook his head in disbelief. "I just can't believe he actually came after Tommy personally. It seems so careless of him."

"That's the thing, Yeager. He knows that nobody knows how he actually looks like. He can walk up to anybody and they wouldn't know that they're talking to the most wanted criminal in the world." She felt a wave of anger hit her for the things Bubonic had done. "But we are going to bring him down from his pedestal, Yeager."

Yeager grinned at her certainty. "Agreed. I'm not giving up until Bubonic's locked up in a maximum security prison." He patted her shoulder and made his way to the driver's door. "I'll be seeing you later, Lindy." He got in the car and in another minute she was watching the red taillights disappear into the night.

"We're having lunch at Sandro's," George told Lindy with no room in his voice for debate.

"Um, okay," she said baffled by his sudden request, "Sounds good."

George could hear her confusion over the phone. "I found something important that's definitely going to interest you."

"Why can't you just tell me over the phone?"

"Nope. I need to show you," He sounded giddy with excitement.

She sighed. She was used to George being so cryptic. "Okay."

They arrived at Sandro's at the same time. George requested a table outside in the patio. Despite the fact that the sun was warm, there was a chill in the air. They were the only ones eating outside since the rest of the clientele had decided to stay inside where it was warmer. Usually after being cooped up all day in the office they liked to sit outside to get some fresh air which was good since hacking also involved being indoors for long periods of time. Although Lindy wasn't working or hacking she didn't mind eating outside. It was autumn, her favorite season because of the leaves changing into beautiful colors of orange, gold, and red.

Sandro's was one of their favorite places to eat since they served a mish mash of international cuisine despite the fact that the name made it sound Italian.

They were seated and after they had ordered George asked her, "How's Tommy doing?"

"I called him yesterday. He said he feels better and Yeager's been checking up on him. He called to tell me that the drug left Tommy's system, so Tommy went back to work today."

"That's a relief. He scared me when he passed out at the club, and I was having a good time too." Lindy rolled her eyes and looked over the metal railing separating the patio from the street to watch some of the leaves scatter with the wind.

"He scared me too," she said softly. "I just wish there was a way we could know where Bubonic is or at least be able to anticipate his next move."

"Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it." George said with a twinkle in his eye. Lindy stared at him, wondering what he meant, but before she could ask a cute redheaded waitress served them their food and left, but not before earning a wink and a grin from George.

Lindy took a bite of her lasagna, closing her eyes, savoring the taste. It was amazing. She dabbed her mouth with a napkin and looked at George. "Okay, why did you make me come here?"

His mouth was stuffed full with some of the chicken enchiladas he'd ordered. Lindy rolled her eyes and waited for him to swallow. "What, I can't just call my best friend to come have lunch with me using the pretext of having something to show her?" Lindy glared at him hard.

"Okay, okay, just stop staring at me like that. I feel like you're burning my soul." He wiped some sauce beside his lip and took out his laptop from his satchel that he'd hung on his chair. "See, yesterday I came across something very interesting." He moved their drinks out of the way and turned the laptop toward her so that she could see. On the screen there was an announcement for an event that was taking place that weekend at a high end museum in Manhattan. It was an art auction for priceless art and other priceless artifacts. And suddenly she knew why George was showing her this. It was absolutely brilliant.

"George, this is perfect. You're a genius," she exclaimed. She felt like she could kiss him.

"Yeah, well, you know me." George was never one to be humble.

Bubonic was mainly known for his hacking, but he also specialized in a lot of other illegal activities and one of them was art theft. He hacked into even the most secure museum and deactivated their security system and cameras. He then sends in his lackeys and they take out the guards and whatever art they're after frames and all. An art auction where there were original paintings like Picassos and old Roman artifacts seemed like precisely the kind of thing Bubonic would be after.

"But that's not even the best part." Lindy looked at George expectantly. "It's a masquerade."

"Are you kidding me?"

George shook his head, gleefully. "We can easily blend in. No one will recognize us."

"There's only one problem," Lindy said hating to be a spoilsport, "It's by invitation only."

"And when has that ever stopped us?" George challenged. It was one of the reasons she loved him. He was always willing to help her no matter how far on the other side of the law it was. "We have connections that can help get us in. Well at least you do, especially since they're practically blood thirsty for Bubonic."

Lindy sighed. She knew what he was talking about, but that would mean having to go to the Cyber Crimes Unit. She hadn't stepped foot in there since she had found out what they'd been hiding from her. But she knew that she had to go and face Catherine eventually. And Tommy.

She didn't need to tell George what she had decided. He could see it in her eyes, but he could also tell how uneasy she was. "Want me to go with you?"

Lindy looked at him gratefully. "Yes, please. I could really use the moral support."

"No."

"No? What do you mean no?"

"No. As in hell no."

"It's a good idea. You know it is," Lindy said following him with George trailing at a safe distance behind the both of them.

"It's a terrible idea."

"Why?" Lindy huffed.

"Why?" Tommy whirled around to face her, their height difference abundantly clear. Lindy didn't back down despite his tall frame towering over her. "Are you seriously even asking me that question? Okay, let me tell you why." He counted off on his fingers as he talked. "It's dangerous, it's reckless, we can't even be sure Bubonic will be there, and if he were there we wouldn't even know who to look for since I seriously doubt he'll be wearing his usual bird mask. He's not an idiot."

So Yeager hadn't told him who the guy who had drugged him really was. She was half thankful but half wished that he had told him so that she wouldn't have to.

"We're 95% positive that Bubonic will be there."

"So there's a 5% chance he won't then."

"You're focusing on the negative."

"I'm being realistic."

"Tommy," George piped up. He knew this argument was only going to get more heated and neither of them was likely to back down. "This is our best chance at catching Bubonic. He wouldn't be expecting us there. Lindy and I have worked for him before. We've heard things and this is definitely the type of thing he would do. You can't miss this opportunity."

"And what opportunity would that be?" A new voice asked.

They all turned to see Catherine striding over to them. Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut. He knew that this wasn't going to end up the way he wanted. His superior always tended to side with Lindy despite how dangerous the situation was. He could only count on the fact that Lindy was probably still too angry at Catherine to work with her. Catherine's eyes widened slightly when she noticed Lindy. She obviously hadn't expected to see her in the precinct either. Lindy stiffened.

"What's going on here?"

Lindy piped up before Tommy could say anything, eliminating any hope that she wouldn't work with Catherine. "I have a plan to catch Bubonic."

Catherine crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow in interest. "I'm listening." Tommy suppressed a groan. Why was Lindy getting involved in their cases again? After the Flirtual Killer was caught she was supposed to be done since she was no longer a source.

"Sergeant, don't listen to her. It's not a good idea." Lindy glared at him, clearly irritated.

"What's your plan," Catherine addressed Lindy and ignoring Tommy. Tommy could feel his anger rising.

"There's an art auction this weekend at a museum in Manhattan that's going to be auctioning off priceless art. This is something Bubonic will definitely be interested in, being as he's also an art thief." Catherine nodded, clearly following. "Since it's a masquerade he and his lackeys won't be able to recognize any of us. We can blend in and if we see anything suspicious we can put a stop to it. We'd be one step ahead of Bubonic, since he won't be expecting us."

"But how can you be sure Bubonic himself will be there and that he won't just send in some of his men to get the art for him?" Catherine asked, although Lindy could tell she was interested.

George and Lindy exchanged looks before George explained. "We've heard things when we worked for him. He likes to rub it in the authority's faces that he's stealing the valuable art personally, but nobody knows that since he's always hiding his face. Not even the people who are helping him out know it's him."

"That seems pretty careless of him," Tommy grumbled. He could tell that Catherine was warming up to the idea.

"I think you two are right," she said looking at George and Lindy.

Damn it. "Sergeant!"

She looked at Tommy with steel in her eyes. "There have been two other art thefts that we believe Bubonic has orchestrated but they haven't been proved and there's one other one that has. It's in his file if you remember, detective."

"I remember," he said hotly.

"I say we do this. Like Lindy said, he won't be expecting us and he won't have a clear view of your faces. We can try to catch him once and for all, Lindy," she said, turning to her. "Why don't you come into my office so we can talk?"

Lindy nodded stiffly and followed after her. She didn't trust Catherine. She always seemed to have an ulterior motive for everything she did. She had said so herself. She would do whatever it took to catch the bad guy, but at least she agreed with her unlike Tommy who'd completely shot down her idea.

Tommy watched them go. He was so angry he could punch something. He glared at George in a way that made George very thankful that looks couldn't kill or he was sure he'd be dead. George scuttled over to where Yeager was for safety while Yeager looked on in amusement. Tommy strode after him. "Yeager, help." George said desperately, pointing at Tommy.

"Okay, man," Yeager told Tommy. "You need to calm down."

"Calm down? How am I supposed to calm down?" he demanded. "Lindy's getting herself into where she doesn't belong. Again, and George here," he jerked a thumb at him, "Is helping her." George was furiously typing into Yeager's computer pretending he hadn't heard that. Tommy half expected to hear yelling coming from Catherine's office but he didn't hear anything at all. He turned back to George, glaring at him so hard George was surprised Tommy hadn't burned a hole through his sweater. "Why is Lindy doing this?" Tommy demanded, angrily.

"You know, Lindy." George said laughing nervously but stopped when he saw the look Tommy was giving him. "When she sets her mind on something there's no talking her out of it."

"Isn't that the truth," Yeager muttered, before Tommy threw a dark look at him too.

"Why are you helping her do this, George?" Tommy asked, irritated about how everything was turning out. "This is Bubonic. It's bad enough Lindy's getting involved, but why are you putting your own life at risk?"

George looked at him steadily. No nervous laughter or anything. "She's my best friend and partner in crime. If she asked me to help her hack into the CIA I would."

Tommy knew that George was loyal to Lindy. That's he'd do a lot for her, but he hadn't known how deep their friendship ran. He didn't say anything more. They were all quiet for a while, the only sound being the clacking of the keyboard George was working on.

"So what do you guys think about wearing matching bow ties to the event?" George asked after a while back to his usual self, looking hopefully between the two detectives. "Personally, I think we'd look pretty snazzy." They both glared at him until George grumbled out a fine. "Just don't be jealous when I get all the ladies."

"What are you doing anyway?" Tommy questioned.

"I'm hacking into the museum's security network and planting a bug so that if the codes get changed before the event it'll alert me."

"We don't do that here." How many times had he told Lindy that? "And besides, it's Bubonic, he'll easily detect it."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong Tommy boy. That's the beauty of this thing. I designed it so that it's completely undetectable not to mention untraceable. Not even Bubonic will be able to find it," he said gleefully. Tommy supposed that he should feel grateful that George was on their side and not against them. Yeager gave him a look that showed him he felt the exact same way.

Lindy came out of the office then with Catherine. By the satisfied look on Lindy's face Tommy knew they were going through with this. He made his way over toward them knowing he wasn't going to change Catherine's mind knowing it was already made up, but still hoping he could. Damn it, why did Lindy have to get involved?

"Sergeant, can I have a word with you?" He glanced at Lindy and by the look on her face he could tell that she knew what he was up to. "Privately," he added.

"There's no need, detective. I've already made up my mind. Lindy's right. This is the perfect opportunity. Bubonic won't be expecting us to have figured out his next move. We have to take advantage of that. We're doing this and she's involved. And so is George. So work with them." She turned to Lindy. "I think you two need to have a talk. As I understand there's information that you have that he needs to know about, correct?"

Information? "Right," Lindy said not meeting Tommy's look.

Catherine went into her office and shut the door after her without looking back.

"Damn right we're going to talk," Tommy muttered under his breath, but with the look Lindy threw his way he knew she had heard him.

"Let's go talk," she said leading the way towards the tables by the big floor to ceiling windows that looked out over the Brooklyn Bridge and the water below. Tommy ranted the whole way there, attracting the stares of more than a few of his co-workers. She finally had enough. "Tommy, shut up." She pointed to a chair. "Sit down and listen to what I have to say already." Tommy stared at her slightly slack jawed, but did as she said grudgingly.

She sat down across from him. Tommy didn't even try to hide his anger. He knew it was written all over his face. That would have been enough to make most people edge away and not approach him for a few hours until they knew he had cooled down…somewhat. But this was Lindy and she stared back at him unflinchingly. It both infuriated him and made him admire her even more. "Why are you involving yourself in this, Lindy?" Tommy asked exasperated. "This is Bubonic. I _know_ you know how dangerous he is, but you're acting like he's not."

Lindy gave him a withering look. "I said I get to talk now." Tommy leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.

"Fine, go. But this better be good."

She didn't know how to tell him gently and she knew Tommy wasn't the type to beat around the bush so she just blurted it out. "The man who drugged you at the party wasn't one of Bubonic's lackeys or even him in disguise. It was actually Bubonic himself." She let that sink in. "I know without a doubt," she said before he could ask, "Because I've seen him without his mask before."

Tommy stared at her, trying to connect together what she couldn't have possibly just said in his mind, but knowing that he'd heard her clear as day. "When did you see him?" he asked quietly.

"Back at the Reconnoiter party."

"You've known who he was since then?" he exclaimed, looking furious. A few people turned to see what was going on but Tommy ignored them.

"He only took off his mask. He didn't tell me his real name. He just told me that he was angry because about what happened to his girlfriend and that's why he had a grudge against you guys."

"You knew about Melanie before I even told you?" He recalled how she had seemed to guess who would know Bubonic's real identity before he had even told her when he was telling her why Bubonic hated him. And now he knew why.

"All he told me was that his girlfriend killed herself because she was afraid of what Cyber Crimes would do to her and that's why he was bitter. He didn't give me any details. He made it seem like it was all your fault, but I knew that wasn't true," she said trying to look into Tommy's eyes, but he wouldn't look at her.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" he demanded, finally looking her right in the eye. "He could have hurt you. I told you not to go down there without backup but of course you never listen to me. What if something had happened to you?" He would have never forgiven himself if Bubonic had done something to Lindy. He had threatened him as much when he'd watched helplessly as Lindy's signal had disappeared going into the boiler room. Why did he keep making bad calls? He had promised her he wouldn't do that again.

Lindy was watching him curiously. Could she tell what was running through his mind? She already felt guilty. She didn't want to keep bringing up Operation Magnifly, but this was leading up to that exactly. "He didn't do anything to me, Tommy. Nothing happened. I'm sitting right here in front of you." Tommy had the sudden urge to reach out and take her hand to make sure she was really there but he was angry at her for keeping this to herself for so long although he knew he wasn't being fair. He had done the exact same thing to her.

She told him everything that had happened the night of the Reconnoiter party and why she had lied and told him that she hadn't seen Bubonic and only found the phone to stop the game and deactivate the bomb. Tommy listened intently. He couldn't really blame her. She had picked saving all those people over catching Bubonic. He had done the same thing by picking to erase Babylon rather than arrest Hamish. When she was done he said, "I can understand why you didn't tell me since Bubonic was right. I _was_ keeping something from you." The words tasted bitter on his tongue. "But I wish you had still told me." Now he knew how she had felt about Operation Magnify. "If you had told me before we could have identified him sooner."

"We can do it now. We have footage of him at the club this Saturday. He does it quickly but you can see him putting something in your drink and most importantly you can see his face. Normally you wouldn't know it was Bubonic himself, but now you do. Yeager and George are on it right now." She nodded her head towards them. Tommy could see them busily typing away at their computers and looking up at the series of images that had come up on the monitor once in a while.

"Why do you keep saying we?" She fixed him with a look that most people wouldn't have challenged but this was Tommy and that was exactly what he did. "Lindy, I don't care what Catherine said. There's no way I'm letting you in on this. I don't want you getting involved with Bubonic again. He's after _me_. This is my problem. I don't want you getting hurt. Despite the fact that he let you go once I doubt he'd do it again. Just please don't get involved."

"I think I'm the best person to help you guys, besides Catherine already agreed," she said ignoring his plea.

"I don't care if she agreed. You are not doing this," he ground out.

"It's done, Tommy." It was like talking to a wall. It infuriated him when she gave him that tilt of her head and that defiant expression as if that was supposed to end the discussion. "Bubonic showed _me_ his face not you. There must have been a reason for it. He must think we're kindred spirits or something because he believes we've both been hurt by the Cyber Unit. He probably thought that he could get me on his side- not that that would ever happen- but I can use that to our advantage. I want to help you, Tommy."

"It's too dangerous, Lindy."

"I know, but I'm willing to take that risk."

"Hey," Yeager said walking up to them. "I've got some leads if you guys…" he trailed off, glancing back and forth between the two. He could feel the tension between them. "Or maybe when you're done you guys can just come over to where we are." He started to turn away, feeling awkward for interrupting.

"We're done here," Lindy said standing up and following Yeager. Yeager threw Tommy an apologetic look over his shoulder. Tommy let his anger boil. He knew that when Lindy made up her mind neither Heaven nor hell could change it. Even though he _did not_ want her involved he knew he had to let her. He was just going to have to keep her safe. Only he wasn't sure if it was for her sake or his.

"…our face recognition software identified him. Although the most recent stuff we could find on him was from four years ago, before he became Bubonic," Yeager was saying as Tommy walked up to them. "With this information we can identify him more easily at the auction this weekend."

Lindy sat down at Yeager's workstation. She caught George's eye and nodded at him, a signal. Their fingers flew over their keyboards, typing in a series of codes as a series of images came on the screen showing Bubonic's last known address, medical records, old school records, and old pictures of him.

Tommy knew that Lindy was really good at what she did, but with George she was lethal. Yeager gave him an amused look that showed him he agreed.

"So that's him," George said looking up at the monitor.

"Yeah, he's younger there but it's definitely him," Lindy said, nodding.

Yeager looked at the name on the ID from Connecticut. "His real name is Derek Wheeler."

Tommy was staring intently at the screen. He felt a sense of horror wash over him. The man on the screen-Bubonic-Derek- had curly brown hair, light blue eyes, and a slightly boyish face. He looked younger than what Tommy had originally thought Bubonic would be. Tommy recognized him as the man he had been talking to at the club, but he realized then why he had looked so familiar. He couldn't believe it. He let out a string of curse words under his breath.

"What?" Yeager asked looking at him like he was crazy. "Do you know him or something?" He was only joking around but the smile dropped from his face when he noticed the shocked look on Tommy's. "Where?" was all he asked because he knew from Tommy's reaction that he _had_ seen him.

"He was in my apartment," Tommy half whispered to himself. He sat down on a chair nearby. He wasn't one for getting weak in the knees from any situation. As a cop he had been in many horrific situations, but the thought of Bubonic having been in the place where he slept at night and that Tommy had actually talked to him face to face. It was almost too much to bear.

Yeager didn't think he had heard him right. "Did you just say he was in your apartment?"

Tommy nodded feeling too dazed to speak.

"When was this?" Lindy demanded. At least she was still thinking rationally he thought numbly. "Tommy?"

He looked at her. At those chocolate eyes that were concerned, for him. "Back before the Reconnoiter party, when he put that ad for the furniture in my apartment. When I got there I saw people taking my stuff. I went inside and he passed himself off as one of the people that had seen the ad. He was even the one who told me about it when I had him at gunpoint. I thought he was a civilian and then I got distracted because I noticed Boris was gone."

"Boris?" George asked, confused.

"It's his dog," Lindy answered. "Go on Tommy."

He was fully aware that he was babbling now, but he couldn't stop. "I had him at gunpoint! If only I had known who he was I would have arrested him. He was in my apartment. He was just waiting for me to come home. He was just rubbing it in my face, oh God." He felt like an idiot. "How could I have not known?" Lindy stood up and put a hand on his arm, he became less agitated but not much. "If I had just known…"

"There's no way you could have known, but at least now you do know who he is." She looked into his eyes. "We're going to catch him. I promise." How many times had he told her that when they were looking for the Flirtual Killer? He smiled ruefully at her. "You shouldn't promise something you might not be able to deliver."

"Yeah, well I could say the same about you."

"I'm gunna keep mine, Lindy." He said looking at her seriously. He had meant it when he had told her that in the alleyway.

"Yeah, well so am I."

A few days later Lindy was lying on her bed, a discarded book beside her. She had never been much of a reader preferring to have her hands on a computer. She wasn't sure what that said about her, but she didn't particularly care either. She knew what she was good at. She was trying to distract herself from thinking about what she hoped was going to take place on Saturday. Yeager had told her they were going to make arrangements with the museum to get them in without giving away too much information. There was no need to cause a panic. They were pretty sure though that they could the tickets without too much trouble. Tommy had finally come around to the idea, but he still hadn't looked happy about her being involved.

Sophia and Connor's voices drifted in from the living room. She was about to go join them when her phone rang.

She rolled over in her bed, reaching to get her phone she'd left on her nightstand earlier. Tommy's picture flashed on the screen. She smiled remembering when she had taken it. She'd done it when he was unaware. She wouldn't have normally done that but he refused to pose for her stating he hated getting his picture taken. It was a good picture. He had been working on something at the precinct when she had called his name, pretending she was going to ask him something. He had looked up, one eyebrow raised in expectation, and snap. She had taken the picture. He had demanded that she delete it and she'd told him she had but by then she had emailed it to herself and sent it to George as well.

"Hello?"

"Hey," his voice said coming through the phone. "What are you doing right now?"

"Nothing, just hanging in my room." She could imagine him sitting down at his work station in the precinct, looking over a file, rubbing his temple, likely feeling stressed.

"Well, we're in."

"You got the stuff for Saturday ready?"

"Yeah." In that one word she knew how he was feeling. It was weird how in tune to his emotions she was becoming.

"Tommy, it's gunna be okay. We'll be undercover. With the masquerade masks no one will tell it's us."

"I know," he hesitated. "I just have a feeling that something's going to go wrong." She felt the exact same way, but she didn't want to tell him that. She already knew how he felt about having to do this undercover operation in the first place.

"Don't think like that. We just have to hope for the best. This is going to get us closer to Bubonic. We can put a stop to his plan and catch him. And he can finally stop coming after you," she added quietly.

He was quiet for a moment before saying, "Last chance to back out, Lindy."

"Nice try, Tommy," she said, feeling indignant, "But I've already made up my mind." She could hear him grumbling. "Anything else I need to know?" she asked before he could try to say anything else to change her mind.

"Just wear something pretty," he said before hanging up.


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry guys, crazy month, but here goes an even crazier chapter.**

Tommy and Yeager stepped out of the car both dressed up in tuxedos, prepped for the evening ahead. They'd come in Yeager's car having figured that Bubonic was less likely to identify Yeager's car than Tommy's. They had already made plans to meet up with Lindy, George, and Sophia inside of the museum.

Sophia had been their latest addition to their plan. One that Yeager hadn't been too happy about. Since she was pretty much aware of everything that happened at the precinct because Lindy kept her up to date, and since Yeager needed a date to better blend in, it was decided that she was the best person for the job. She had agreed, although hesitant, and had then gone on to be cleared and briefed by Catherine.

The two detectives followed the stream of well-dressed people heading into the museum. It was a bit bizarre to see everyone so dressed up in fancy dresses and tuxedos, their faces hidden behind beautiful and extraordinarily detailed masquerade masks just to go see a bunch of paintings and artifacts created by long ago dead people.

Tommy and Yeager finally stepped in to the museum's foyer after having shown their invitations to the guard at the front door and had then had them verified to make sure they weren't fake by another guard.

The museum had been decorated beautifully for the event. There were flowers arranged in ornate vases dotting every available flat surface, a chandelier hung from above that Tommy had no doubt was made from real crystal, gold curtains hung from it that then spread out to connect to the corners of the room, forming a sort of canopy. To the side there were tables covered in gold tablecloths set with fine china and crystal polished so brightly that it reflected the lighting. On the other side of the room there was string quartet playing low melodic music. The grand sweeping staircase in the foyer of the museum that led up to the second floor had steps made from shining marble, the banister had been decorated with gold ribbon with more flowers interwoven in between.

Yeager gave a low whistle as they gazed around the room. "This is supposed to be a museum? Where's the art?" he whispered so that only Tommy could hear.

"Apparently this used to be a mansion that belonged to some oil baron in the turn of the last century. When he died it was converted into a museum. As for the paintings they should in the auction room on the second floor." They made their way closer to the main floor where there were a few couples on the dancefloor already swaying back and forth in time to the soft music as others milled around socializing.

Tommy surveyed the room looking for Lindy. "So tell me, man," Yeager said. "Are you still mad at, Lindy, for not telling you about seeing you-know-who sooner?" Yeager didn't need to clarify to tell him he meant Bubonic.

"Yeah, a little," he admitted," still looking around the room for her. "I just wish she had told me, you know? At least when I was explaining to her about why he's after me." His eyes passed over an old couple who were sipping wine and chatting quietly and hadn't bothered to put on a mask, over a man wearing a mask that reminded him of the one worn in The Phantom of the Opera, and a woman who already looked like she had had too much to drink before finally landing on Lindy.

She and Sophia were both laughing at something George had said. Sophia was wearing an emerald colored dress that just barely brushed over the floor and a glittery gold mask. George was in a tux, a red mask, and a matching red bowtie, having decided to wear one despite the fact that Yeager and Tommy had refused to, but it was Lindy who took his breath away. She was wearing a flowy black dress that stopped just above her heels, the fact that she was even wearing any surprised Tommy since he knew she preferred to wear heeled boots, having told him once that wearing heels felt like death traps for her ankles. Her hair was done in soft curls and she had on a white mask with glittery gold curlicues.

He felt rooted to the spot, he couldn't seem to look away. Seeming to sense his gaze on her she turned and their eyes met. Tommy swore he felt an electric shock go through him. He had never felt anything like it before. He had never felt like this about anyone before.

Yeager followed his gaze and grinned. "You know," Yeager said, clapping a hand on Tommy's shoulder. "Somehow, I don't think you'll be mad at her for much longer." He made his way toward the group with Tommy following at a slower pace behind him.

"Hey," Tommy said a little breathlessly when he was finally in front of her.

"Hey," she said. She sounded a little breathless too.

"You look-" Stunning, beautiful, gorgeous, but what came out of his mouth was, "-nice."

She smiled at him. "Thanks. You clean up pretty well yourself." She stared at him rather intently. There was something different about him, but she couldn't tell right away what it was. Then as he turned to say something to Yeager she realized what it was. "Oh my, God," she practically shrieked.

"What, what is it?" Tommy asked, looking around frantically trying to find what had made Lindy react that way. He had reached for his hip where Lindy knew he had his gun hidden away.

"Nothing," she said coloring slightly. She hadn't meant to alarm Tommy or make such a big deal out of something so small, or to cause a few people nearby to turn around at the spectacle she had made. "Í just- you shaved," she said, trailing off lamely.

Tommy rolled his eyes but couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, I didn't want to make it totally obvious that it was me. Apparently, my stubble is a trademark. Besides, this is a very formal event."

"You look good, Tommy. Younger even," Sophia told him. "Why don't you do that more often?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "I like my look."

"Well that looks good too," Lindy stated, "but if you really didn't want people to recognize you you probably should have done something about your hair."

"My hair?" he reached, patting it self-consciously. "What's wrong with my hair?"

Lindy bit her lip. She had definitely just stuck her foot in her mouth. "Nothing."

Tommy continued to glare at her. He knew his mom didn't like it. She always commented on it in a very unsubtle way that he should change it whenever he went home to visit. He didn't think it was that bad. He liked it. But now Lindy was looking at him like she was trying hard not to laugh and it made him wonder if maybe it was time for a change. "What's wrong with my hair?" he asked again in a mock stern voice.

"Nothing, if you like that whole slicked back punk look," she said, avoiding his rather intense gaze.

"I didn't even style it that way tonight," Tommy protested. Tonight he had parted it to the side in order to look more formal.

"Tommy," Lindy said laughing softly. "It's fine. I was only joking around. You don't have to get all worked up about it." Now Tommy blushed, which was never an easy thing to get him to do. He was being ridiculously defensive about his hair. They were both oblivious to the exchanged knowing looks between George, Yeager, and Sophia as they watched the easy banter.

"You know," George said addressing Tommy and Yeager. "If you guys had followed my lead and worn a bowtie like I had suggested, you would both look even better, regardless of hair," he added, throwing Tommy a pointed look. "The ladies would be all over you." Sophia shot him and Yeager an unamused glare to which Yeager responded by pulling her close and whispering something in her ear, making her smile.

"So when is my date getting here?" George asked, leaning toward Tommy confidentially. "I mean I did make quite the entrance by arriving with these two beautiful ladies on each arm," he nodded towards Sophia and Lindy, "but now I have to give them up to two bowtie-less guys. I should at least get to keep one." Lindy shoved him playfully. "Someone should have the honor of being my date."

Tommy rolled his eyes. "Detective Pascal should be here any minute." As if on cue Pascal strolled up to them. She looked gorgeous in a dark blue dress and silver mask, her blond hair done up in a chignon. George just stared at her looking awestruck.

"Hi. Sorry, I'm a little late," she said, greeting everyone. "Catherine was going over some last minute details with me."

"It's fine. You haven't missed anything," Tommy reassured her. "Pascal, you remember George," he gestured to George who seemed to be breathing normally again.

"Yes, I remember George. We worked together for a bit at the Reconnoiter party," she sidled closer to him. "So you're my date and partner in crime for this evening. Can't say I'm disappointed." She looped her arm through his. "We do have to act the part of a couple," she told him deadpan.

"Yes, we should really do that." George said, looking everywhere but at her. "That's not a problem. None at all." Well this was a shock. Lindy didn't know of many girls who could make George go quiet and falter in his easy flirtation.

Pascal had reminded Tommy that he needed to act the part of a couple with Lindy. Yeager and Sophia didn't need any reminding. They already looked and acted the part, although Tommy knew they weren't pretending. He scooted closer to Lindy. She looked at him in surprise as he slid his arm around her waist, taking a cue from Yeager. He raised his eyebrows up at her and she nodded in understanding, leaning into him. She fit perfectly against him. When he tore his gaze away from her he saw Yeager giving him an amused look. Tommy shot him a glare but didn't let go of Lindy.

"We should get going," Pascal told the group. "We'll meet up and report later."

"You know your assignment?" Tommy asked. He knew Pascal was efficient, but he asked anyway. Since he was in charge of this mission he needed to make sure everyone knew their assignments so that all would go well.

"Completely." She nodded at everyone in parting before tugging George away, but not before he pointed at his bowtie, grinning widely at his friends, before disappearing into the throng of people.

Sophia grinned. "That boy, he can always make me laugh."

Yeager shook his head, amused. "C'mon," he told Sophia. "We've got to get going. We need to make our rounds too." They waved goodbye to Lindy and Tommy and made their way through the crowd to their positions.

"So," Tommy began awkwardly. "You wanna dance?"

Lindy stifled a laugh. "Dance?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, why, you think I can't dance?"

Lindy bit her lip to keep from laughing and avoided his gaze. "What?" he asked moving around to face her. "I'll try my hardest not to pass out this time, absolutely no wine."

"It's not that." Now he could definitely tell she was trying hard not to laugh. "It's just… you're a terrible dancer."

"I-I'm not a bad dancer!" he stammered. He was so surprised. "I'll prove it." She didn't look like she believed him.

He took her hand, but only to keep up the appearance of a couple, not because it was almost like an instinct to do so. Lindy hesitated at first, not really used to being so platonic with him, but she forced herself to loosen up. She knew she had to sell the part of being a couple.

They made some small talk along the way with people who had come here to be entertained, see the art, and if they were drunk enough or really just had that much money in their bank accounts, to bid for the art.

They were on the dance floor near the string quartet who were playing soft lilting music, but that somehow still managed to sound old timey. Probably because most of the people here were old.

"Is this what we're supposed to be doing?" Lindy asked looking uncertain. "Isn't there something or someone we should be scoping out?"

Tommy tried to not take the fact that she didn't seem to want to dance with him personally. "Honestly, Lindy. I'll try not to step on your feet if that's what you're worried about." That got a laugh out of her. "As for our assignment it's to blend in and watch out for any suspicious activity and then go upstairs and check on the art. Same as everyone else. Only Pascal and George are going to be checking out the art first thing, then Sophia and Yeager. We'll do that later."

"Okay," Since she was wearing heels her head reached just below his chin, allowing her to look into his eyes more easily. "Let's dance."

She stepped closer to him gingerly placing a hand on his shoulder. He took her free hand in his and placed his other hand on her waist. She felt so awkward now. She didn't know why she couldn't just act the part of the couple. It's not like it was serious, but as she felt Tommy's warmth against her and looked into his eyes, her breath hitched in her throat. What was happening?

He led the dance and was surprisingly good. When she told him so he chuckled. "Honestly, I'm just copying what everyone else is doing."

"I knew you couldn't really dance."

"Actually, I told you that I'd prove that I could and as far as I'm concerned I'm doing pretty well."

"I guess," she mumbled not wanting to admit he was right. Her eyes roamed around the room trying to catch sight of Yeager and Sophia but she didn't see them. They were likely already upstairs scoping out the art.

"So about my hair," Tommy began.

Lindy groaned. "Not this again."

"You see, you just don't appreciate it."

"You can't be serious." She wondered if he was joking around or if he was really just that protective of his hair. She looked at his face. It was dead serious. She rolled her eyes and reached up, patting his hair nicely, feeling ridiculous the whole time. "I'm sorry hair."

Tommy grinned, looking pleased. Sophia was right, without the stubble he did look younger, relaxed even but Lindy knew he was on high alert, his eyes always searching for any suspicious activity. A couple passed too close to them and Tommy pulled Lindy closer to have her avoid being bumped or her dress stepped on but didn't pull away after they'd passed.

"Tommy," Lindy said suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"I want us to make an agreement."

"What kind of an agreement?"

"Since we're friends and we're going to be working together… I don't want there to be any secrets between us."

Tommy felt like there was a weight on his chest. He couldn't agree to that wholeheartedly as much as he wanted to. He would always be keeping a secret from her. One that he didn't plan on ever telling her but he agreed anyway because what she didn't know wouldn't hurt her. This wasn't like Operation Magnifly or him finding something out about her sister and not telling her. He would be completely honest with her like she wanted, except about his feelings for her. Keeping this would just hurt him.

"You know," Lindy said after a while of dancing quietly together, Lindy feeling content and Tommy with a somewhat guilty conscious, "that woman keeps staring at you."

This sounded familiar. Tommy turned them slightly so that he could see who she was looking at. It was an older woman who hadn't bothered to wear a mask, in a fuchsia dress and lipstick to match. She raised her glass of wine when she noticed Tommy looking and winked. Tommy quickly turned them away again and swept Lindy farther away from the elder woman.

"She's not my type," Tommy said, not looking Lindy in the eye.

"Right. You said your type is smart and not easily afraid, right?" She was smirking, clearly amused by the older women having her sights set on Tommy.

"When did I say that?"

"You told me at the club before the blonde took you out to dance." Her face was neutral, but Tommy thought he had heard an undercurrent of something in her voice but he couldn't pinpoint what.

"Yeah, that's part of it," he said softly, holding her close.

"There's more?" Lindy asked raising an eyebrow challengingly.

"Definitely. Not that you need to know." He was afraid that he was going to say too much and that she would figure it out.

"I bet I can guess."

He tilted his head at her. "Oh yeah?" He said feeling a little alarmed. "This I have to hear."

"Well," she began. "You're right about needing someone who isn't easily afraid. You can be a pretty intimidating guy sometimes, especially when you're on full on cop mode." She leaned in close to him so that he could feel her breath on his chin. "I also think you need someone who can keep you grounded because you can get pretty invested in your job. You need someone to remind you that it's okay to relax."

Amazing. She had just described some of her qualities and she didn't even know it. "That sounds really nice," he drawled. "But I know this girl wouldn't ever give me a moment's piece."

"You seem certain about that. Have you been thinking about this a lot?" she asked curiously.

"I just know what I want." He was feeling increasingly uncomfortable, he felt like they were getting into dangerous territory.

"You know that person you want could be right in front of you."

He looked down at her, startled. Did she know? "What?"

"Yeah you could find her somewhere unexpected." She was staring at him curiously. When Tommy saw that she hadn't meant anything specific by what she'd said he sighed inside feeling relieved, but couldn't help but add, "Yeah, she could be right under my nose." She was completely oblivious to the way Tommy was looking at her.

"If you found this girl, what would you be willing to do for her?" It was an odd question but one that he answered without hesitation.

"Anything." He said looking into her eyes.

"Would you fight for her?"

Tommy pulled her closer, not wanting to let go, knowing that this wasn't going to last. Why was it that whenever he acted with Lindy the way he really wanted to it was always just for show? He exhaled softly and in that one breath Lindy could hear sadness and regret. "If only it were that easy, Lindy."

Tommy's face was tinged with sadness. She wanted to ask him if he had already found this girl and if something had happened to make him believe he couldn't fight for her when Yeager's voice came through the earpieces they both had concealed.

"It's all clear. No suspicious activity. Ten minutes." Throughout Yeager's report they had kept dancing trying to seem normal despite the fact that it felt like someone was inside their heads.

"What did he mean by ten minutes?" Lindy whispered to Tommy so they wouldn't be overheard.

"In ten minutes we have to go up there." He was all cop again, alert. The easiness with which he had been talking with was gone, the spell had been broken. Lindy found herself missing the way Tommy was when he let his guard down. He was more easygoing, more vulnerable, but she knew it was a side that he didn't show very often.

Suddenly she felt Tommy stiffen. "What's wrong?" she asked him.

"I see Hamish."

Lindy's breath froze. Hamish? What the hell was he doing here?

As if reading her thoughts Tommy said, "He must be here to buy some of the art. He certainly has enough money to throw around." Tommy started to lead Lindy back. To anyone watching it just looked as if Tommy was sweeping Lindy across the dancefloor. It looked elegant even. Eventually they reached a pillar and slow danced behind that.

"Do you think he saw us?" Lindy asked, her heart beating hard at that thought of their cover being blown.

"I don't think so, but I didn't want us in his line of sight, just in case. He'd be likely to recognize us."

"I don't trust him." Tommy looked down at her, a smile tugging at his lips.

"That makes two of us." He edged slowly around the pillar, looking in Hamish's direction. "Coast is clear. He's busy talking with someone, heading away from us." Tommy held his arm out to her. "C'mon we have to start making our way upstairs." She threaded her arm through his and they steadily made their way towards the stairs.

Just as they were about to reach them a man wearing a green mask, covering his whole face accidentally bumped into Tommy.

"Sorry about that. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going," he said, his voice a little muffled by the mask.

"It's fine." Tommy said brusquely, trying to make his way past him.

The man looked back and forth between Tommy and Lindy, taking them in and the way Tommy's arm was looped around Lindy's waist. "You two make a lovely couple," he told them. His voice had the hint of a smile although his mask made it impossible to tell.

Tommy smiled tightly. "Thanks." Apparently they were doing a good job of selling this couple act Lindy thought feeling a little disconcerted since that she couldn't see the man's face. The man made his way over to the dancefloor. Tommy watched him go until he lost him in the crowd, feeling uneasy. Lindy tugged on his arm and they continued on their way not saying anything to each other.

By the time they reached the top of the stairs they were two minutes behind schedule. Lindy looked over the railing to see some guests in groups chatting while others danced. The beautiful decorations along with the way everyone was dressed with elaborate masks over their faces made Lindy feel as if she was in another time, in another place, making it seem ethereal.

"Lindy, you coming?" She turned to see Tommy waiting for her. She realized she had stopped and was just staring at the people below.

"Yeah, let's go." They made their way to the end of the hall where the art was in exhibition. One couple was coming out of the room, smiling satisfactorily like they had already decided which piece of art they were going to buy.

It was a large dimly lit room located at the back of the mansion. Every individual piece of art stood on its own pedestal spotlighted from above and below. Some pieces were absolutely beautiful while others made Lindy wonder why they were even fit to be seen by the public. She knew that just one piece was worth more than the apartment building she lived in. As she looked around the room something kept nagging at her. She couldn't place what it was right away, but she felt like something was…off.

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that when Tommy placed a hand on her shoulder she nearly jumped out of her skin. Tommy looked at her like she was crazy but leaned in to whisper something in her ear. "You would think that the guards would be a little more alert considering they're guarding millions of dollars' worth of art." Lindy looked around and saw that Tommy was right. Two of the guards looked half asleep, another was looking at his phone animatedly, clearly playing some kind of game on it, and another was sneaking bites of a sandwich, if the crumbs at his feet indicated anything.

"I can't believe this," Lindy whispered in disbelief. "Do you think they're being paid off or are they actually bored out of their minds?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it. Anyone could easily sneak in here, knock them out, and make off with the art. The alarm wouldn't even be raised until much later."

Lindy nodded in agreement gazing around the room, taking everything in. There was only one other man besides them. He was admiring Van Gogh's Starry Night painting. Apparently, it was being auctioned off. Sara had once told her that it was her favorite painting. It was also hers.

Suddenly, she heard Tommy's sharp intake of breath. She whirled around wondering what the matter was. He looked like he had seen a ghost. She followed his gaze to the man across the room. He was slightly turned towards them, giving them a clear view of his mask.

It looked just like Bubonic's.

The man turned to look at another painting. Tommy took a step forward as if he were going to charge at him. Lindy grabbed his arm before he could take another step.

"Tommy," she whispered urgently. "Don't. It can't be him. He's not stupid enough to wear his actual mask."

"I know," he said, sounding frustrated, "but-"

"Don't," she repeated.

The man was completely oblivious to their tense exchange. He continued to stare at the art. "Let's just get a little closer. Just to make sure he doesn't do anything." And he called her reckless. This just screamed trap.

"It has to be a coincidence, Tommy."

"Lindy, there are no coincidences." She knew that Tommy was a skeptic but this really wasn't the time or place to be discussing it. "Bubonic is supposed to strike tonight. That man in the bird mask is like a message."

"It's more like a decoy," she shot back, feeling increasingly frustrated.

"Let's just get closer."

"Fine," she agreed reluctantly.

She stayed close to Tommy's side as they made their way closer to the man, pretending to admire the art they passed on the way. They stopped in front of a Picasso painting. Tommy leaned in, pretending to inspect some miniscule detail- despite the fact that the painting made absolutely no sense- but he was really watching the man out of the corner of his eye. He looked like he was waiting for something…or someone. Tommy tensed. Lindy put a hand on his arm, sensing where his thoughts were going. She gave him a warning look.

Sometimes, he hated that she knew what he was thinking.

They made their way closer. "So, honey." Lindy said in an overly sweet voice. Tommy quirked an eyebrow at her. "Which painting do you like best?" Tommy nearly laughed out loud, despite how tense he felt. He knew there was no way that either of them could afford any of these paintings, but he didn't laugh because he didn't want to blow their cover. Most of the people here could afford the paintings and still had a lot more money to spare.

"I really like that one." He pointed to a painting behind Lindy. She turned to see another Picasso. It was a painting of a man that looked like someone had taken a mixer to his face.

She bit her lip to keep from laughing. "Yeah, it'd definitely look good over the fireplace." Tommy snorted. The closest thing he had to a fireplace was a furnace he had to kick in order for it to work half the time. He turned to look back at the man just in time to see him disappear behind a painting. Tommy walked quickly but quietly toward him so he wouldn't raise the guards suspicions despite the fact that he looked exactly like what he was, an angry cop. All he needed to do to make it blatantly obvious was to take out his gun. Just as Lindy thought this she saw Tommy reach into his jacket.

Lindy walked quickly after him, trying to catch up, her heels clacking the whole way. This was another reason she hated heels, she couldn't walk comfortably in them, much less run, but Sophia had threatened her bodily harm into wearing them and when that hadn't worked she'd threatened to hide her laptop.

She managed to catch up to Tommy just before he reached the painting the man had gone behind. " _Don't_ touch your gun," she hissed. "Just calm down. You're making it glaringly obvious that you're a cop right now." He brushed past her and yanked off his mask but didn't reach for his gun again. They inched around the piece of art and saw the man crouched down by the base of the stand the painting sat on. He looked as if he were planting something.

Before Lindy or the man could react Tommy hauled him up by the front of his shirt and slammed him back against the wall. "Who are you and what are you doing?" Tommy hissed.

"I-" Tommy yanked off his mask before the man could finish his sentence. It wasn't Bubonic. The man had curly brown hair like he did, but that's where the resemblance ended. He had an angular jaw and green eyes whereas Bubonic had a boyish face and light blue eyes.

"Why are you wearing that mask?" Tommy demanded. He was right up against the man's face. The guy looked scared. Lindy knew Tommy's terrify the suspect interrogation method wasn't going to get them anywhere. What was worse was that this wasn't a method. He was just pissed and he wanted answers. She placed a hand on Tommy's rigid arm.

"Tommy," she said softly. "Calm down."

Tommy risked a glance at her. "Calm down? You want me to calm down? How am I supposed to do that when this guy here's wearing a mask like Bubonic's and looks like he's about to steal a painting?"

"I wasn't going to take anything, I swear," the man piped up, his eyes darting frantically between Tommy and Lindy before finally resting on Lindy. He still looked terrified albeit with good reason, there was an angry cop pinning him to the wall. Lindy realized she was still wearing her mask. She pulled it off and let it drop to the floor. The man looked slightly less terrified now that he could finally see a face that wasn't glowering at him, but not much since Tommy still had him gripped tightly. Lindy could see that the guy was hoping she could talk some sense into Tommy.

"Then what _were_ you doing?" Lindy asked him. Despite the fact that she had known he wasn't Bubonic, the man had still been acting suspiciously. Like Tommy had said, it was too much of a coincidence that the man was wearing a plague doctor mask and had been hiding behind the paintings.

The man bit his lip, his eyes darting wildly over Tommy's shoulder as if expecting to see a monster come up behind him. "She asked you a question," Tommy growled, shaking the man a little.

"I'm not supposed to say anything or else he's going to kill me."

"If you _don't_ say anything you're going to go to jail," Tommy threatened. The man looked like that was a risk he was willing to take.

Lindy looked around the room and noticed something. "Tommy." There must have been something in her voice because he looked at her in concern.

"What is it?"

"The guards are gone."

His grip on the man loosened. "What?"

"The guards. They're gone." Lindy repeated, although she knew he had heard her clearly. He looked around the room, never letting go of the man's shirt. There was nobody where the guards had once stood. Nobody to guard millions of dollars' worth of art.

"What do you know about this? Why are the guards gone?" Tommy demanded, directing his question at the quaking man.

"I don't know anything," he responded. Tommy didn't believe him for a second.

"Tommy let go of him so that he can actually talk," Lindy said, trying to reason with him. There was a dangerous glint in Tommy's eye that she didn't like. Tommy let go of the man slowly never taking his eyes off his face.

Lindy knew this was hard for Tommy. His search for Bubonic wasn't making Tommy think straight. She knew how badly he wanted to catch him, to end the threat on his life, but she had seen Tommy angry enough times to know how intimidating he could be and that usually the people he interrogated were not really willing to answer many if any of his questions.

"What's your name?" Lindy asked the man in a much less scarier voice than Tommy had used.

"Richard." He looked relieved that he wasn't being pinned to the wall anymore. Lindy could see Tommy reaching for his gun under his jacket. The man noticed at the same time and reflexively took a step closer to Lindy. He obviously considered talking to her safer than talking to Tommy.

"Don't move," Tommy told him in a deathly calm voice. Somehow that was scarier than when Tommy yelled. Richard froze. If Lindy hadn't known Tommy any better, if she didn't known how caring and gentle he could be, she knew she would have likely been a little scared of him herself by the way he was acting right now, not that she would have shown him. Lindy shot Tommy a dark look and he grudgingly dropped his hand back to his side. She knew he wanted answers but the way he was acting wasn't going to get them any.

She turned back to Richard. "You need to tell us why you're wearing that mask."

"It's a masquerade." Lindy crossed her arms at him. She could tell he was lying by the way he wouldn't meet her eyes.

"If you don't tell me the truth I'm going to have to turn you back over to him." She nodded her head toward Tommy who had his arms crossed against his chest and his face was a mask of fury. Richard paled.

"I swear I don't know anything about the guards," he stammered out. "He just told me that if I switched masks with him and came over here and planted that thing near the painting just after I saw you guys come in he'd pay me a lot of money, but that if I said anything about what I did to anyone he'd kill me."

Tommy whirled around to where he had thought Richard had been hiding something earlier and crouched down picking up something that gave off a dull shine. Lindy could see Tommy's face pale. "What is it, Tommy?"

Wordlessly, he held it out to her. It looked like a dog tag but it was shaped like the mask Bubonic usually wore. It was a message to Tommy she was sure of it. "Tommy?" she could see the anger growing on his face and knew he was one second away from grabbing Richard again. "Who paid you?" she asked Richard at the same time Tommy asked "What mask did you give him?"

"I don't know who he is. He didn't give me his name." He described how the man looked like. It matched Bubonic's-Derek's- description perfectly. "He's here," Tommy said so quietly that only Lindy could hear. She nodded.

"What mask did you give him?" Tommy asked again, taking a step closer to Richard. Richard reflexively took a step back and hit the wall behind him.

"It was green." Lindy's breath hitched. Tommy froze.

"It was green?" Tommy finally managed to ask.

"Yes and since it covered my whole face he said it was perfect for his needs and so we traded."

Lindy looked at Tommy's face. It was a mix of disbelief and white hot fury. Lindy could feel herself getting angry too. Bubonic had walked right in front of them. He had talked to them and had made a fool out of them, _again_.

"We've got to go after him." Tommy told her, ignoring Richard.

"Call for back up, Tommy," Lindy urged. She didn't want them going after Derek and his cronies alone. Tommy started to raise his hand to his mouth where the mouthpiece was hidden.

Then the lights went out.

Downstairs they could hear screaming as people's sight was whisked away.

She heard feet running away from them and Lindy knew Richard had made a run for it.

"Tommy!"

"I'm here. I'm right here." She felt something brush her arm and nearly kicked out until she realized it was Tommy searching for her hand. She held on to it tightly.

"Richard?" Tommy called. They both heard a cry of pain on the far side of them and then a thud. Tommy gripped her hand harder and pulled her toward him so that she was right against him. "Who's there?" Tommy called out. They both heard the sound of something being dragged.

"Richard?" Lindy called out. No answer. "What the hell is going on?" She whispered to Tommy.

"It's Bubonic. He's here." She knew that but she had no idea how Tommy had managed to voice it. She couldn't even bring herself to fully think about it. Lindy could hear the rustle of fabric and knew that Tommy had taken his gun out. "Don't let go of my arm." She gripped the fabric of his tuxedo tightly. "There's someone in here with us. I think they took Richard. We're going to make our way out of here, okay. We _will_ get out of here." His voice was utterly serious. "Don't let go of me, okay?"

"I won't." Her eyes were getting used to the dark and she could tell that Tommy was looking at her although she couldn't make out the expression on his face. They moved off in the general direction of where Lindy remembered they had come in through.

They couldn't hear anything else. It was eerily quiet in the room besides the sound of their ragged breathing and the people panicking downstairs, although that didn't mean that no one else was in the room with them. Tommy needed back up. Risking their general location to anyone else in the room with them, he raised his arm to his lips again and tried to make contact with his team.

"Yeager, are you there?" Tommy said into the small microphone hidden in his sleeve. There was no answer, not even static. "Yeager?" Nothing. "Pascal? Come in, Pascal." He tried next, with the same result. Tommy knew then that someone had cut their connection.

"What's going on? Why aren't they answering?" Lindy asked.

"I think someone cut our line. Either Bubonic already knew we were coming or he figured it out quick. Either way I can't reach them." Lindy could hear the fear in Tommy's voice. They walked closer to where the doorway was supposed to be. She could still hear the sounds of people panicking downstairs as they tried to fight their way out of the museum. Her vision was getting used to the dark and through the gloom she was finally able to make out the doorway.

She tugged on Tommy's sleeve. "Over there," she pointed. He looked and quickly led her that way.

He didn't know what it was. Maybe it was being a cop for so many years, of having been in danger so many times, or the fact that it was dark and his senses were heightened as Connor had once told him they did when one sense is taken away, or the fact that Lindy was holding tightly onto him and was trusting him at least temporarily to get her out of here safely, and he'd be damned if he didn't do it, but some animal instinct that told him that he and Lindy were in danger.

He managed to jump out of the way, pushing Lindy aside before the hammer hit the air where his head had just been. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion for him. The man that had attacked him was still swinging the hammer in mid-air. Tommy reacted without thinking. He kicked out, his foot connecting with the attacker's ribs, sending him sprawling to ground. He followed it with another swifter kick to the man's stomach. Then he was on him, punching him, knocking the night vision goggles off his face. He heard Lindy gasp as she realized what was happening. She heard the man grunt in pain as Tommy hit him. He didn't stop until the attacker was out cold.

Tommy stood up and faced her. "He was wearing night vision goggles. That's how he could see us," Tommy told her, breathing heavily. "We've gotta get out of here." He took her hand and together they ran to the doorway.

They had almost reached it when Lindy felt herself yanked back roughly. She crashed onto the floor landing roughly on her side, the wind knocked out of her. Tommy whirled around to see what had happened and was promptly hit in the chest, knocking him back. It felt like a truck had slammed into him. He thought it was the guy he had knocked out earlier but Tommy could still make him out lying on the ground a few feet away but this was another larger guy also clad in night vision goggles, but thankfully no hammer.

Tommy didn't have much to be thankful for right now.

The man punched him in the jaw and Tommy saw stars. The attacker hooked a leg behind him, tripping him, making him land on his back. The back of his head hitting the ground hard. He lay still, pain shooting through his head. He blinked through it, trying to get his bearings, but it was still hard to do with no lights on. He rolled over on his side and saw the attacker heading for Lindy, who still lay on the ground, a purpose in his every step, a gun in his hand.

Tommy saw red.

All he could think about was not letting him get near her, not letting him lay a finger on her. Lindy was still sprawled on the ground trying to regain her breathing. She raised her head to see the man coming for her. She scooted back trying to get away.

Tommy charged and tackled the guy sending them both to the ground. "Lindy," he yelled, ducking a punch. She could hear the desperation in his voice. "Get out of here. Find Yeager or Pascal, they'll get you out. Tell them to send for back up." His fist connected with the man's nose and she heard a crunch.

"I'm not leaving you here!"

"Lindy, for once will you just listen to me?" He saw her hesitate. "Don't worry about me. Go!" She didn't want to but she needed to get Tommy back up. He couldn't hold off the guy forever and who knew how many more were coming? Somehow, Bubonic must have found out they were here or they hadn't been careful enough blending in. She hated him. She felt it so deeply in her it scared her.

She rocketed across the remaining distance to the doorway and made her way out into the hall where she saw another man also wearing night vision goggles heading her way, already having spotted her. She felt her stomach sink. Another one? How many more were there? She shook herself. There was no way she was going down without a fight.

She spun around and made as if to run back into the auction room. Before she could take a step he had her in a bear hug. It was exactly what she wanted. She pretended to struggle for a bit and he tightened his arms around her like she had predicted. She lifted her heel clad foot and scraped it hard down his shin and stomped it on his foot. She heard a satisfying crunch. Immediately, he loosened his hold on her and howled in pain. She had just effectively broken his foot. But she wasn't done yet. The cronies' mission to go after Lindy had been completely forgotten, he was bent over clutching his foot. As he was distracted Lindy drove her elbow into the back of the man's head and he crumpled. She just might have to thank Sophia for making her wear her heels.

She ran down the hall, shadowy flower vases rushing past her and made her way down the stairs, grabbing onto the railing the whole way down. It wouldn't do to fall and crack her head now.

All she could see when she reached the bottom were the shadowy shapes of the last few people rushing out of the museum. "Yeager!" she screamed. She saw a shadow detach itself near a pillar and rush toward her. She felt Yeager's hands on her shoulders before she was fully able to make out his worried face in front of her.

"Lindy, are you okay? Where's Tommy? Where have the hell have you guys been? I tried contacting you when I saw Hamish to warn you guys but it didn't go through and then the lights went out."

"Yeager," she said a little desperately. "You have to go help Tommy. He's upstairs in the auction room. Bubonic knows we're here." Yeager flinched. "He sent us a decoy and then when the lights went out he sent people after us with night vision goggles. I left him fighting someone. You have to go to him." As soon as the last sentence left her lips the lights flickered back on with no warning.

Yeager and Lindy blinked hard at the sudden brightness, trying to get their bearings. Yeager rubbed his eyes, having taken off his mask when the lights went out. "Go with George and Sophia," he told her. "They're outside in a police van. It's the black one at the corner. He'll take you." He gestured for an undercover to come over. "I already called for backup. I'm going to go help Tommy."

She grabbed onto his sleeve before he could leave. "I'm coming with you."

"Lindy…"

"No, Yeager, I'm going." She turned and ran up the stairs before he could say anything else. She heard Yeager grumble something about how he could understand why Tommy was usually frustrated with her half the time and ran after her, taking two steps at a time. He reached the top first and rushed down the hall, Lindy managing to keep up despite her heels. Yeager stopped suddenly at the entrance of the auction room, almost making Lindy collide with him. He was blocking the entrance so she ducked under his arm to see what had stopped him and gasped.

Tommy wasn't fighting anyone like Lindy had expected. There was nobody in the room. No sign of any of the attackers that had been hurt or knocked out. She could see the masquerade masks she, Tommy, and Richard had dropped. There were empty spaces where some of the paintings had once stood, a few of the remaining ones were ripped or bent as if someone had been shoved into them. There was a hammer lying on the floor half way across the room as well as a pair of night vision goggles beside it. What was worse was that there was a small pool of blood on the floor. Whose it was Lindy wasn't sure, but she hoped to God it wasn't Tommy's.

A little ways off near the entrance was something that glinted in the light. Lindy walked towards it with shaking legs and picked it up. It was the tag Tommy had picked up earlier from Richard. The bird seemed to be mocking her. She knew Tommy must have dropped it during his struggle but couldn't help but feel like it was a message. She turned toward Yeager whose features were stretched tight. "He took Tommy," she choked out.

Yeager shook his head roughly from side to side, refusing to believe what she had just said. "We're going to search this place from top to bottom. He could still be here." Even though Yeager said this in a calm, steady voice he didn't look like he believed himself.

A man, who must have been an undercover, came up to Yeager and started talking to him urgently. Yeager whispered something back and the man took off running. "He's an undercover," Yeager explained to Lindy. "We're going to start looking for Tommy now."

He didn't bother to tell her to go with George and Sophia like he wanted to since he knew she wouldn't listen, even if it was safer. Yeager knew, although he was sure Lindy hadn't figured it out yet herself, that she had strong feelings for Tommy. That maybe even she was in love with him the way Tommy was in love with her. There was no way she was going to sit still while Tommy was missing and they were out looking for him.

Lindy followed Yeager out. All of the guests had already left. The auction had never even taken place. They searched the floor they were on, while the other detectives searched the first floor and the basement. They looked in all of the rooms but sound nothing. Lindy had a tight feeling in her chest that only got tighter with every empty room she looked in. Yeager was frantic, barking orders, while trying to offer Lindy a few comforting words, but they fell short since Yeager needed comfort himself.

Lindy was starting to head downstairs when something caught her attention. There was a door she and Yeager hadn't noticed because it was blocked by a stand with a vase of flowers on it. The flowers in the vase had been put in haphazardly some were even strewn on the ground, the vase wasn't perfectly centered like the others, and the stand was pressed up right against the door while the rest were set apart from the wall. All of the arrangements except this one were arranged uniformly. In an event like this Lindy figured the curators would want everything perfect, down to the last detail. It was like the person who had arranged this had had their eyes closed while doing it…or as if it had been too dark to tell.

With a rising sense of panic she pushed the stand roughly aside knocking the whole thing to the ground. The vase shattered sending shards flying. Yeager looked over at her startled but ran over to help her when he saw the door hidden behind the arrangement. As soon as they got the door open Lindy peered in. It was dark in what appeared to be a supply closet. She felt against the side of the wall searching for the light switch, her fingers brushing over it and she flicked it on, flooding the room in light and revealing the scene before them.

There in the back of the room with his shirt torn and missing a shoe was Tommy. He was laying on his back, unmoving, a pool of blood under his head.

Lying next to him was Bubonic's tag, identical to the one in her hand.


	9. Chapter 9

The first thing Tommy felt before he had even opened his eyes was pain. It was worse than the time he had gotten beat up outside IRL. He tried to go back to the sleepy haze of sedatives but it was too late, he was already at the surface, loud voices pulling him out, the voices becoming clearer and more distinct. They sounded like they were arguing. One was an older woman's voice who he couldn't place and the other one sounded a lot like Lindy.

"You're not supposed to be in here. He needs to get his rest," said the unknown speaker.

"Well, I'm not leaving." Yup, that was definitely Lindy.

"Only family members are allowed to be in here. Are you a family member?" The woman's voice sounded condescending, like she already knew the answer.

"I'm…" Tommy was sure the woman was going kick her out, "…his fiancée," she finished.

Tommy's eyes flew open at that. The sudden movement sent a dull pain shooting through his head, but somehow he managed not to make a sound despite it. He quickly took in his surroundings and saw that he was in a hospital room. Luckily, Lindy and a nurse- who he now saw was the unknown voice- were busy squaring off and didn't notice he had woken up. He quickly closed his eyes again and pretended he was still sleeping.

"He's your fiancé?" The woman didn't sound like she believed her.

"Yes I am." She was? "If you don't believe me you can go and ask the cop standing outside the room. He can back me up." Yeager must be outside if she was so confident someone would lie for her about that. He heard the sound of Lindy's heels clack toward him and then felt the smooth skin of her hand in his. Tommy almost opened his eyes to look at the expression on her face. He knew from her tone and from experience that it was defiant, but he didn't because he could feel the nurse's gaze on them. "Go on, ask," Lindy challenged.

"That won't be necessary," the nurse said grudgingly. "You can stay." He heard the door to his room open and shut after her. Tommy opened his eyes. Lindy was looking at the door the woman had just gone through and didn't notice him looking at her. He smiled. She looked tired, her hair was in slight disarray, and her dress was rumpled, but she still looked beautiful to him.

"So when's the big day?" Tommy asked. Lindy gaze cut to him, startled.

Her face turned a nice shade of red which secretly pleased Tommy. He had never been able to make her blush before. "How much of that did you hear?" she asked nervously, not meeting his gaze.

"Enough. You know you could have at least warned me. A groom's got a right to know when his wedding day is."

Lindy realized her hand was still in his and used it to smack his shoulder. "I just wanted her to let me stay," she said defensively. "Besides, we've used that excuse on the hospital staff before." Her face changed from indignant to one of worry when she noticed the look of pain flash on Tommy's and mentally cursed herself. How could she have been so stupid? He had a head injury and she had just smacked him. "Tommy, I'm so sorry. I forgot. How could I have forgotten? I mean you have that gauze wrapped around your head which should serve to remind me." She was babbling. Tommy put her hand on hers and she instantly quieted. "I'm sorry," she repeated.

"It's fine. It'll pass. It already is," he told her reassuringly.

"No. Not just that," she said quietly, looking out the window beside Tommy's bed, at the bright city lights. She turned toward him suddenly. "I'm sorry I left you to fight off those goons alone. I shouldn't have." She could still picture the way they had found Tommy lying on the ground unmoving, with the blood pooling beneath his head. She felt tears prick her eyes but fought them off. When she had seen him like that she had assumed the worse, all the while hoping for the best.

"Hey, I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere," he promised. She smiled although she knew it was forced. He fixed her with a serious look. "Lindy, I know you would have fought like hell. I have no doubt about that, but I didn't want you to get hurt. They had guns and hammers…that's why I wanted you to go." He had wanted her to go because he wouldn't have forgiven himself if they had done anything to her while there was something he could have done to save her. The way that guy had stood over her with the gun in his hand, he had no doubt about what he would have done. His stomach churned at the thought. He would take being the one in this hospital bed with a head injury any day rather than to have her be the one that was hurt.

She realized then how often he did that. How he was always making her leave, risking his life so that she could get to safety. She knew he was a cop and that was his job, but still. She wanted to ask him about that but another question was pressing her.

She sat down on an uncomfortable looking plastic chair beside his bed and scooted closer to him. "What's the last thing you remember, Tommy?"

He cast his mind back. He remembered questioning Richard, the lights going out, and trying to make his way out of the dark auction room with Lindy. He remembered how the man was going to attack Lindy and how he had knocked him down before he could get any closer. When she left he had fought off the guy, but then another one had come out of nowhere, and the last thing he remembered was hitting the floor.

Lindy was studying his face carefully. "That bad, huh?" she reached over and squeezed his hand, surprising him. She looked down at their intertwined hands, surprised by how normal it felt. He didn't say anything. He didn't need to.

"Aw, well aren't you two adorable?" They both turned to see the nurse who had been arguing with Lindy earlier smiling at them. They hadn't heard her come in. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you, sweetie," she told Lindy with an apologetic look on her face. Lindy was surprised. She definitely hadn't expected the nurse to apologize to her, especially since what Lindy had told her _was_ a lie. Somehow, they were still pulling off the couple thing. She almost pulled her hand out of Tommy's but she knew that would look suspicious.

"It's okay," she said faintly, tightening her hold on Tommy's hand instead.

The nurse gave her a bright smile before turning to Tommy. "Okay, good you're awake now. I'm Katy, your nurse. How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts."

"Yeah, you banged it up pretty good, but it'll heal. You got some stitches for that cut on your head and you do have a small concussion, but it's not too serious. You'll feel better in a few days. In the meantime your friends are outside your room screening everyone, so you'll be safe. We're all going to take good care of you." Her smile reminded Tommy of the one his mother gave him when he was little and she told him his night light would keep the monsters away. Katy checked his vitals and looked over his chart. "If you need anything just holler, or actually, just press that button by your bed," she told him before leaving the room, but not before throwing them another smile.

"They're guarding my room?" he asked Lindy.

"Yup. You didn't think that after what happened they were just going to leave you here on your own did you?" she said raising an eyebrow up at him. Tommy scowled. "If you say you don't need a protective detail one more time Tommy, I'm gunna make sure you stay here longer," Lindy threatened. Tommy couldn't help but laugh.

"Don't test me," she said, pointing her finger at him.

He raised his hands up as if to ward her off. "Okay, I won't, but I'm not happy about it."

Lindy huffed impatiently. "Tommy-"

The door to the room swung open to reveal a frantic looking Dr. Wells. "Tommy!" she exclaimed, breathless. She looked like she had run all the way here. She narrowed her eyes when she saw Lindy with him. "And you. It's Linda, right?"

"Lind _y_ ," she said with more force than was probably necessary. She had always had the feeling that Dr. Wells didn't like her, but she had never understood why. Last time they were here she had given her subtle put downs that most people listening might not have noticed, but Lindy had.

"Right," she turned to Tommy, ignoring Lindy as if she weren't even in the room. "A nurse friend of mine told me you were here." She took in the gauze around his head and the cuts and bruises on his arms and face. "She told me you were hurt. I rushed over here as soon as I found out, I was so worried."

Lindy stood up stiffly. "I'm going to go get some coffee. I'll just leave you two alone."

"You don't have to go," Tommy said at the exact same time that the neurosurgeon said, "That's probably for the best."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lindy asked her indignantly.

"Nothing personal. I just meant you've been with Tommy most of the night. I'm sure you'd like to take a break." She knew that's not what she had meant. Lindy stared at hard into Vivian's eyes, making her feel as though they were facing off. Something flashed in them. It looked a lot like…jealousy? But it was gone so fast that Lindy wasn't sure if it had been there at all. Vivian looked away first.

"I'll be back later," Lindy told Tommy. Vivian watched her go and then sat down on the chair that Lindy had just vacated, taking Tommy's hand in hers. It felt strange to Tommy to be holding her hand again. It just didn't seem to fit right in his own.

"What happened to you? My friend told me you'd come in with a head injury. Then she told me that you're fiancée was with you?" she questioned. "Are you guys undercover again? You both seem to use that excuse a lot. Are you sure there's nothing going on between you two?"

"Nothing," he said flatly. It was the truth after all.

"Then why did she say-"

"We were acting as a couple at the event we were at to blend in. That's all." His voice came out harsher than he had meant it to, she flinched and withdrew her hand.

He sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just been a long night."

"Of course." She nodded her head vigorously. "I understand." She fidgeted with the edge of Tommy's blanket with her free hand. "I talked to the doctor. He told me you had a concussion and that you got some stitches for the cut on your head, but you should recover quickly. So that's good news."

He knew well she hadn't come here just to tell him about his condition. She twirled her hair with her finger the way Tommy knew she did when she was trying to phrase something and didn't quite know how to. He remembered she did that right before she had broken up with him. He knew firsthand how long that could take. He decided to make it easier on the both of them.

He exhaled slowly. "Why are you here, Vivian?"

"I was worried about you, Tom." He cringed internally. He hated that name. The only people who had called him Tom were his grandparents and even then that had been sparingly. She had called him that because she wanted to call him something no one else did. It was one reason he had been glad they had broken up.

"Why? There's nothing between us."

She looked at the floor and bit her lip. "I know," she said softly. "And that's my fault." Tommy felt uncomfortable. He just wanted her to leave him alone. The next thing she said shocked him. "I still care about you, Tommy…a lot. I shouldn't have broken up with you. I want you back." She said the last part in a rush as if to get it out in the open once and for all.

Usually he was good with words. He could come up with something quick and witty to say, but he had absolutely no idea what to say to that. He was trying to come up with a coherent sentence when she continued. "I've been thinking about this a lot since the last time I asked you for that favor." She looked away, and then said so quickly he almost didn't catch it, "And then I saw the way you were with Lily."

"It's _Lindy_ ," he said seriously annoyed, almost pissed. "It was thanks to her that we found out who was hacking the hospital. She saved hundreds of lives. The least you could do is remember her name." Vivian sat back stunned. Tommy knew he had never talked to her like that before. He made his voice softer.

"I'm sorry Vivian, but I don't think us getting back together is a good idea." He actually wasn't sorry, but it seemed like the right thing to say. "Besides," he added. "The reason we broke up is this right here. You were afraid I'd get hurt and since you'd seen too many people get hurt, you didn't want me to be one of them. You couldn't handle someone close to you having a line of work so dangerous and I respected your decision, but I wasn't going give up my job. I still wouldn't. I get to help people. Keep them safe. I'm sorry you couldn't understand that."

He looked into her warm brown eyes. He hadn't been in love with Vivian. They hadn't gone out long enough for that, but he had cared about her. Vivian on the other hand had fallen head over heels for him, she had told him so herself. But having him pick between her- who he wasn't in love with- and his job, that'd he'd worked hard to get where he was now- he'd chosen his job.

"This isn't just about your job is it? I realize making you pick between me and your job wasn't fair and I'm sorry I ever did that Tom, but this is about more than that." Tommy didn't know where she was going with this. "It's because of her, isn't it? You've fallen in love with her." It was a statement not a question. Tommy didn't say anything which only confirmed what she thought.

"I could tell you cared about her," she said almost to herself. "But I didn't realize you were in love with her." She looked him dead in the eye. "Are you? Are you in love with her?"

"Yes."

"Okay," she started to reach for his hand again but then thought better of it and drew it back. She stood up. "I lost you. I have to accept that." She sighed a little dejectedly. "Just promise me one thing, Tom."

"Vivian, please call me Tommy, and what is it?" It was so beyond weird to have a conversation with your ex about how you felt about someone currently that wasn't her.

"Tell her how you feel."

Tommy was momentarily stunned. "What?"

"Tell her. She deserves to know and you deserve to let yourself feel." She patted his hand and with one last look at him left the room.

X

Twenty minutes later Lindy came back in with a cold cup of coffee in her hand. She'd taken a few sips but she had mostly just sat waiting on a seat around the corner from Tommy's room waiting for Vivian to leave, and had then stayed outside a little longer talking to Yeager who was outside Tommy's hospital room helping guard it.

"Hey," she greeted. He looked up, startled. He'd been looking out the window deep in though and hadn't heard her come in.

"Hey."

"So," she said, placing her cup of coffee on the little table beside his bed and sitting down on the plastic chair. "Any dates lined up? I mean, I know they say a woman can't resist a man in uniform. I can't imagine what they say about a man wrapped in bandages."

Tommy rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but grin. "Like I said before," he said looking into her eyes. "A neurosurgeon and a cop, it's just not going to work out."

"Well, it's her loss." The tight feeling in Lindy's chest after she had left Tommy alone with Vivian lifted.

Tommy gave her a small smile but said nothing. After a while he was asleep.

X

"Okay, George. I'm sending it to you…now!" She hit the send button and waited for George to confirm he got the file.

Lindy glanced over to where Tommy and Yeager were sitting a way's away conducting their own investigation. Yeager was pointing something out on the computer screen they were both looking at. Tommy nodded absently, tapping out an angry rhythm with his fingers on the metal desk he sat at. Tommy had been released from the hospital after a day and had been ordered to take it easy but he had gone back to work on Monday, brushing off everyone's concerns. He was on the hunt and the fact that Bubonic had basically sent people to attack him hadn't deterred him in the least. In fact it had made him even more bloodthirsty to find him.

"Got it!" George exclaimed suddenly. "And now I'm going to work my magic." He wiggled his fingers to emphasize his point before they became blurs over the keyboard. Lindy watched over his shoulder as he took the still shot of Sara and her boyfriend Dylan, from the video Jake had given her and then watched as it appeared on the main monitor on the wall as the program ran their faces through the Cyber Unit's face recognition system. The software took their facial characteristics and tried to find if anything matched to any social network pictures and school or government issued ID.

"Have you guys found anything?" George and Lindy had been staring at the computer monitor so intently that Yeager's voice startled them.

"Sorry," Yeager chuckled, noticing.

"It's fine," Lindy answered, brushing a strand of hair back behind her ear. "And no, not yet." She looked over at the desk he and Tommy had been working at. It was empty. "Where's Tommy?"

"He's going over some stuff with Catherine. What have you guys done so far?"

Lindy gave an exasperated sigh. "More like what haven't we done?"

Yeager grabbed a chair and scooted closer. "We've watched that video so many times our eyes started to cross trying to figure out where it was taken, but as far as we could tell it could have been in any old parking lot anywhere. There were no flyers or billboards or specific landmarks that could have given us a clue as to where it was." Lindy paused, the clicking of the keyboard George was working on the only sound. "I've tried tracing the license plate on the 'kidnapper's van,"' she said making air quotes, "but I found the same thing the police did three years ago. It was stolen from another car and placed on the van, so that led nowhere. Next, I tried tracing Dylan's car's license plates and although it did lead back to his car it was found apparently abandoned a week after Sara's abduction in an old barn somewhere in the Oklahoma panhandle. There was nothing left behind according to the police report."

They had been doing this for days now and they still hadn't found anything solid that led to Sara. It was discouraging, but if there was one thing Lindy didn't do it was give up. No matter how much time had passed she still had faith she would find her even when the odds were stacked against her. At least now she knew for sure that Sara was alive.

"I'm sorry, Lindy," Yeager said. She shrugged. There wasn't anything that anyone could really say to make her feel better. That would only happen when Sara was safe in her arms.

"Sorry, Lindy." George piped up, looking between her and Yeager worriedly. "Nothing matched up with Sara."

"Figures," she muttered.

Yeager could hear the disappointment in her voice and squeezed her arm comfortingly. George started typing again. "I'm running Dylan's face now, see if anything matches up," he told her. Lindy nodded absently. Maybe Dylan was the key to finding her sister. A sudden horrible thought struck her.

"Yeager, what if they did escape together, but Dylan took advantage of her?" she asked him a little desperately. "He was older than her. What if she thought she could trust him, but he went back on his word? What if Dylan did something to her?"

"Calm down, Lindy," Yeager said soothingly. She looked at him with wide eyes and Yeager knew then why Tommy went along with whatever she wanted. He wanted to protect her and keep that terrified look off her face. He knew Lindy wouldn't want him to sugar coat anything now, she wanted honesty. "What you just said is a possibility. However, I don't think that's what happened. I think she just went off with him and they're just laying low, staying off the radar."

"How do you know that? She thought she was in love. She was so young. She was only sixteen. She had her whole life ahead of her," she said a little sadly. She had missed out on watching her sister grow up.

"She was only sixteen," he pointed out gently, "but she's smart, Lindy. She came up with a kidnapper's plot to get you, the police, and whoever was after her off her tracks. If she thought she could trust Dylan there was probably a good reason for it." Lindy nodded knowing he was right. She looked over her shoulder towards Catherine's office where she could see through her windows Catherine and Tommy having what looked to be like a heated discussion.

"So how's _your_ investigation going?" Lindy asked Yeager, changing the subject with a change in her tone. She sat back down and started to run a search on Dylan's car herself. She didn't doubt George's abilities in the least. She just wanted to run another scan to keep herself from thinking too much about the fact that Sara's investigation was going in circles and to keep from going crazy.

Yeager watched her. He couldn't even begin to imagine what it was like to go through something like Lindy had. To be lied to that way. Obviously, this was upsetting her more than she let on, but he knew she wouldn't want to talk about it with him. He let her change the subject. "Well," he began, "you know things took a turn for the worse when we found Richard's body in the alleyway behind the museum." Lindy nodded. "But since then Bubonic's been lying low right now. He's gone silent again and honestly, we have no leads." Yeager rubbed his temple. He looked tired. Clearly, he'd been working on the Bubonic case as much as she had been working on Sara's.

"I'm sorry." Yeager shrugged. Clearly, there was nothing she could say to make him feel better either. It seemed they were both stuck in their investigations. She nodded her head towards Catherine's office. "What's up with them?" Lindy asked. Yeager looked where she indicated and shrugged. "It's the protective detail isn't it? He still won't take it."

"Yeah," he said sounding disgruntled.

"Why is he being so stubborn about it? It's for his best."

Yeager crossed his arms and gave a long tired sigh. "I've tried reasoning with him, but he won't listen. He gets angry and defensive whenever I bring it up." He lowered his voice so that only Lindy could hear. "I think he's scared. There's no way he'll admit it, but I know he is and he doesn't want Bubonic to know it either."

"But he's putting himself in danger!" Lindy exclaimed, frustrated. "He's been attacked multiple times by him. Does he need Bubonic to come and knock on his door for him to finally get it?" She stopped when she realized Bubonic had practically done that. He'd already shown up at Tommy's apartment.

Yeager smiled ruefully. "He's stubborn."

"I know. He's the most stubborn person I've ever met." Yeager smirked. George who'd overheard snorted.

"What?"

"Nothing," Yeager and George answered at the same time.

"Now you guys _have_ to tell me," she said, looking between the two of them.

Yeager and George exchanged a look before George said, "Weeelll, you definitely give Tommy a run for his money on being stubborn." She was about to protest when she realized they were right. She was always doing her own thing no matter how many times someone told her it was a bad idea.

"Tommy should still take the protective detail," Lindy mumbled.

"I completely agree," Yeager told her, smirking, knowing she had realized how stubborn they both were. "But he's not going to listen to me. Maybe if _you_ were to talk to him…"

" _Me_? Why would he listen to me?"

Before Yeager could answer George, who'd gone back to his search on Dylan, suddenly exclaimed, "I've got something!"

Lindy whipped around. "What? What is it?"

George pointed toward the monitor. On it there was an image of a California state driver's license. It was issued to Brian Carson but the picture on it was definitely of Dylan. The best thing of all though was that there was an address. "It's him. It's really him," Lindy said softly, not quite able to believe that they had finally found something solid Ben had told her _"It takes only one to show you the way."_ Well, Dylan-or Brian now- was going to lead her straight to Sara. "I have to go there guys. I have to go see if Sara is with him. He's my best chance at finding her. He _has_ to know something." She wouldn't let herself believe otherwise. "I'm going," she repeated.

"Going where?" Tommy asked, having heard her last remark. He looked at George and Yeager but they wouldn't meet his eye. "What's going on?"

"We found a lead, Tommy," Lindy said eagerly. She pointed to the monitor. He recognized the young man as the same one Sara had kissed in the video. Lindy had told him that she remembered his name being Dylan Stone. Lindy had never really liked him because he was older than Sara. He'd been nearer her age at the time than Sara's. "I've got to follow it up," she was saying. "There's an address that I could scope out. They have live there."

Lindy had no idea what could happen. What kind of dangers could lay ahead. She didn't know what she was getting herself into. Tommy couldn't just flat out say no even though that was exactly what he wanted to say. There had to have been a good reason why Sara fled across the country. There had to. She wouldn't have just run off like that. Tommy sighed. "How about me and you go and get some coffee, Lindy?" Yeager nodded that this was a good idea.

"We just found her, Tommy!" She felt like her chest was stretched tight. She finally had a good solid lead on her sister and Tommy felt like getting coffee now?

"Lindy," he said trying to calm her down. "Your sister has been gone for nearly four years. Going to get coffee for like twenty minutes is not going to change anything."

That made Lindy angry. Now that she had a lead she wanted to follow up on it, but she knew Tommy was right. Getting coffee for a few minutes wasn't going to change anything. She took a deep breath to try to dissipate her anger. "Okay," she agreed, "but fast."

X

"I'd like two Americanos." Tommy ordered from the barista on the other side of the counter. He'd ordered coffee with Lindy enough times to know what she wanted without having to ask her. Back on the street Tommy tried to figure out how to broach the subject that she shouldn't go to California. He shouldn't have bothered. Sara was never far from Lindy's mind.

"I can't believe it. We finally found her," she was saying. "It's a solid lead, Tommy."

"Lindy-"

"I mean all this time. I should have figured it out sooner. She'd always said she'd like to go live somewhere sunnier and she talked about going on a road trip to California someday."

"Lindy-"

"To think that I could have her in front of me soon."

"Lindy," Tommy nearly yelled.

"Yeah?" She asked startled.

"I don't think you should go to California," he said quietly.

Lindy couldn't believe what he had just said. She couldn't have heard right. All this time, she had been searching for Sara for _years_. Did Tommy really think she wasn't going to follow up on this? He had _promised_ her they would find her and now that they were so close he didn't want her to go?

"What?" she hissed, angry.

Tommy swallowed. He had known this wasn't going to be easy. But until he looked into her eyes he hadn't known how hard. "Lindy," he said gently. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into. What if they just put a fake address? What if it's someone else's they're using? You're willing to fly across the country and throw yourself into something you have absolutely no idea about. God knows what can happen."

Tommy could see Lindy's breathing come quicker, her face flush. "I cannot believe you," she almost spit out. "You said you'd help me find her and now that I'm so close you're going back on your word."

"I am not going back. It's just you don't know what's going to happen or what Sara was running away from. What if that creep is watching you, waiting for you to find her and go and meet her? You can end up leading him directly to her."

Lindy froze. She'd never thought of that which only made her angrier. She just wanted to go and find her. Another thought occurred to her. "I think I'd notice if someone was stalking me," she grit out. "I think I've had enough experience in that area with Jake." Passerby were staring at them facing off, looking at them like they were crazy. Their coffees were long forgotten. "I just want to have her in front of me. I deserve an explanation. As long as I find Sara I don't care what happens to me."

"But I do!" Tommy screamed. He knew he'd said too much when she saw her eyes widen. He desperately tried to backtrack. "I can't just let you go headfirst into the unknown, Lindy," he said. "Ben would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you."

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "This is about more than just Ben, Tommy." She was getting too close Tommy thought in a panic. He couldn't let her figure out how he felt about her. How if anything happened to her it'd be like someone had taken a vital piece of him. "There's something you're not telling me, isn't there? Do you know something I don't?"

"It's not that I know something, Lindy. I can't let you go without you knowing what you're getting yourself into."

"What aren't you telling me, Tommy?" she demanded, not buying it.

He was not going to tell her. He couldn't. If he stayed here one more minute he ran the risk of telling her something he wasn't going to be able to take back. It was his secret to keep. He couldn't burden her with it. "Nothing," he said through grit teeth. "Forget it. I'm done talking about this."

He turned on his heel and left her standing in the middle of the sidewalk with a cold cup of coffee in her hand. She felt incredibly wrong footed. She hadn't done anything wrong, had she? She watched his retreating figure get smaller, putting more distance between the two of them. He walked away quickly as if she were the plague.

How many times had she walked away from him angry, leaving him behind with words left unspoken and questions burning the back of his mind? She knew there had been many times and she found as he rounded a corner and disappeared that she didn't like being on the receiving end.


	10. Chapter 10

Tommy sat drooped over on his couch, his legs propped up on the coffee table in front of him, an untouched open bottle of beer next to him. He was staring blankly at the TV droning on in front of him. Some rock band was doing a concert in Madison Square Garden, but he didn't know who they were and he didn't care. He rubbed his temple and gave a long sigh. Boris who was curled up on the floor, sensing his mood, jumped up on the couch and settled in next to him, licking his hand. Tommy smiled softly. "Thanks boy," he said, scratching his dog behind the ears.

He knew it was better this way, to have her be angry at him, to keep her well at arms distance away. He knew he had been getting too close to her. Too close for his own good. He scrubbed his face in frustration. How was it that Lindy had managed to take over every single one of his thoughts without trying? He had been too close to telling her earlier why exactly he couldn't just let her go and follow up on a lead by herself.

Sara had left because of some unknown danger. What if Lindy was walking right into it? He couldn't let that happen, and if that made her angry at him then so be it. He knew he was being selfish, doing this not just for her benefit but for his as well. Could Yeager be right? Would Ben see it as a relief if he were with Lindy? He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. She had enough of her own problems. She didn't need his feelings for her distracting her. Burdening her. Whoever said love was easy was a freaking moron who had no idea what they were talking about.

Tommy glanced at his dog. "We don't need girls do we, boy?" Boris cocked his head and wagged his tail. Tommy chuckled. "I'll take that as a yes."

Just then Boris' ears perked up and he wagged his tail. A sure sign that someone was coming. Tommy glanced at his watch. It was just after ten. Not really a time people came around to visit. He tensed. No, whoever was coming meant business. He looked at his dog. He didn't bristle, which meant that whoever was coming Boris knew and liked. That's how Tommy used to know that Ben was coming over.

A knock sounded at the door. The fact that Boris wasn't growling at the person on the other side of the door was a good sign too. Nevertheless, he was cautious. His gun was inside his jacket which was hanging on a hook by the door within easy reach as he stood in front of his door. He was about to ask who it was, when the person knocked louder, followed by their voice.

"Tommy! Open up! I know you're in there." He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to calm himself. He'd know that voice anywhere. The fact that it was on the other side of his door didn't make it any better. "Tommy!" The pounding on his door grew louder. Great, she was still definitely angry at him.

Taking a deep breath, he swung the door open to reveal her hand still in a fist in mid-air about to knock again. Lindy lowered it, slowly, her angry gaze locking on him. He felt his heart flutter in his chest. She was here outside his apartment and she was pissed. He swallowed, feeling apprehensive.

"We have to talk," she said, brushing past him into the apartment and walking into the middle of his living room. Boris jumped off the couch and licked her hand, and for a moment her angry face softened slightly as she scratched Boris behind the ears. Boris nudged her leg and whined as if saying he had missed her. Traitor.

There were a million questions running through his mind but the one he ended up blurting out was: "How did you know where I live?"

Her face turned hard again. She waved her hand dismissively. "I'm a hacker, Tommy. Figuring out your address was like taking candy from a baby. Besides, you pretty much know everything about me. I figured I should at least know where you live."

Tommy nodded because he wasn't sure what to say to that. She crossed her arms and took a step closer to him, her eyes glittering dangerously. He may not scare easily, but damn she was making him nervous. Boris sensing the tension between the two trotted off further into the apartment, leaving them alone.

"What did you want to talk about?" he asked finally, raking a hand through his hair. He knew full well why she was here.

She wasted no time. "Is there something you know about, Sara? Something you're not telling me? Is there a specific reason why you don't want me to go searching for my little sister who I haven't seen in almost four years?" Tommy flinched at her words. She knew exactly how to make him feel bad.

Lindy really didn't want a repeat of Operation Magnifly where he had withheld information about Sara from her, but she couldn't think of any another reason as to why Tommy was being so adamant about her not going if it wasn't because of something he was keeping from her. There had to be something he wasn't telling her.

"No, Lindy," he said shaking his head. "I don't know anything else about Sara. Only what you've found out."

"Then why?" she asked, feeling increasingly frustrated.

He sighed. "I can't just let you go into this blind, having no idea what you're getting yourself into. You don't know the extent of the situation. It could be dangerous."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take, Tommy."

"You can't just jump headfirst into something without knowing the risks, Lindy," he almost screamed in frustration. "Especially something as big as this!" He wanted to shake her. He had to make her see why he couldn't just let her go if there was a risk that something could happen to her. How he wouldn't be able to live with himself if something did happen. He had to make her see without telling her the real reason.

She couldn't understand why Tommy was getting angry. She was trying to understand what he was telling her, but she felt like she needed to read between the lines to get it. "What aren't you telling me, Tommy?" she asked, trying hard to control her anger. She took a step closer to him while he took a step back. He was starting to feel like a caged animal. "Tommy?" her voice softened, taking on a note of concern. "You know you can tell me anything, right?"

No, he couldn't tell her. Not about this. This was the one thing he couldn't. A tight feeling was welling up in his chest and he knew he had to get her out of here before he said something he couldn't take back. "There are just some things that I can't tell you, Lindy," he said a little dejectedly. "Some things just aren't meant to be said."

Lindy looked at him hard. She wanted so badly to understand him. What wasn't he telling her? She felt like it was obvious. Like it was right in front of her. That she could just reach out and touch it, if only she knew what it was.

"Why, Tommy? I thought we'd promised we wouldn't keep things from each other?" Her statement came out as a question although she hadn't meant to make it sound like one. Something she thought was a fact before was now a doubt.

As they were arguing, they had made their way over to Tommy's kitchen. With him on one side of the kitchen island and her on the other as if they were opponents facing off, but no one was going to win.

"You promised me we were going to find her and now that we almost have you're taking it back, why?" She sounded hurt and it killed Tommy because he knew he was the one hurting her.

"I meant every word I said, Lindy," he said quietly, looking deep into her eyes, willing her to believe him because he _had_ meant every word. "I want you to understand that I would help you in anything you decide to do. That I will help you. But I can't just let you go into this situation with your eyes closed like this."

She stepped back, angry, knowing there was something bigger going on. "What I don't understand is why you're keeping something from me. I thought we were supposed to have each other's backs. Not have a knife up against them," she hissed.

"I do have your back, Lindy," he said desperately, "I can't believe you'd think I'd betray you. I thought you knew me better than that." His words were laced with hurt and Lindy felt every single one cut into her, but she was angry. She felt like he was betraying her.

"What I don't know is why you're doing this to me."

"Because Ben would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you!" he exclaimed. Lindy went still. The very air around them felt like glass. That if any one of them moved or said another word it would shatter.

This was Tommy's last defense. He felt like a complete ass for using it and although what he said was true, that wasn't the entire reason he couldn't let her go.

Lindy processed this slowly. Something was wrong here. He wasn't looking her in the eye. "No," she said slowly and Tommy felt his heart drop. "This is bigger than Ben or even Sara for that matter. There's something more, isn't there?" Tommy wouldn't meet her eye and she knew she was right. "Please just tell me," she pleaded.

"I can't. I'm sorry." He stared down at the floor as if the tiles were the most fascinating thing in the world.

Lindy stood still, her hands clenched into fists. "Fine."

That one word sounded so final and she sounded so defeated that Tommy looked up at the sound of the raw hurt in her voice despite his determination not to so that she would just leave. He was caught by surprise when he saw her eyes glittering with unshed tears. The sight felt like someone had cleaved his heart.

Tommy knew she was proud and that there was no way in hell she was going to let him see her cry again. She would rather leave before that happened again. He was right. She turned abruptly and headed for the door, walking stiffly, but her back ramrod straight.

He knew that if he let her go now she was never going to come back. He wanted to call out to her so badly that it physically hurt him, but the words were stuck in his throat. The fear of what she could say and what Ben could possibly be thinking about him, freezing his veins.

Lindy's hand had just touched the doorknob, fully intending to leave and never come back, when it hit her.

Her mind whirled.

The way Tommy had sounded breathless and had looked disoriented after their kiss in the apartment- something she hadn't really registered until now. She had been too busy dealing with her own scrambled feelings afterward- The way Tommy had gone after her and held her in the rain. The way Tommy was almost fiercely protective of her, never wanting her to get involved in what could possibly be a dangerous situation. The way she sometimes caught him looking at her… like there was something there. How had she not seen it before? Had it always been right in front of her? She had never fully considered why she had lied and told Tommy that she loved Jake so that he would leave Hart Island without her. She knew now that it was because she had known it would get to him and it had. He had looked like she had punched him in the gut. Somehow she had suppressed it all, believing it was all just in her imagination, but she had subconsciously felt it.

Tommy was in love with her.

And what's more, she realized with rising clarity. She was falling in love with him.

The way the kiss at the apartment had left her confused and wanting more and she had cut it off for that reason. The way she herself had felt hurt when she had seen the devastated look on his face when she had told him she loved Jake. The way she felt safe whenever she was with him. How when he was hurt it felt like she was hurt too. How she felt awkward whenever they had to be an undercover couple because she realized, it felt too real. Even the way he got under her skin like no one else. Yes, she was falling for him.

"Lindy."

She whirled around with a gasp. Not because Tommy had called her back but because of the realizations crashing around inside her. And Tommy knew right then as her gaze met his that she had figured it out.

She was at a loss. "Tommy, do you-? Are you-?"

"Yes," he said cutting her off, wanting to say it himself before she could say it out loud. "Yes, Lindy. I'm in love with you."

And she could finally see it, what she had been missing from his expression for so long. It was in his eyes, the love. For her. But she could also see fear and guilt mixed in. Love shouldn't make him feel like that.

She now understood why he never wanted her to throw herself into any situation. Why he didn't want her to go off to California, in what he considered to be a dangerous risk. Why he didn't want her involved in anything that had to do with Bubonic. Why he'd risked everything to find her when Jake had taken her.

"Oh, Tommy," she said softly, slowly walking back to him.

"I know." He chuckled mirthlessly, not looking at her. "I'm in love with my dead best friend's girlfriend."

"Don't," she said sharply, feeling a wave of anger hit her. He looked at her in surprise but the iron lock on his body didn't loosen. His back was rigid, his jaw clenched, and the hand he had on top of the counter was gripped tightly in a fist. "Don't call me that. I'm more than just Ben's ex. I'm me."

"You think I don't know that? That I do think of you as more than that, but to do so it feels like I'm betraying my best friend?"

"Tommy," she said her throat tight. "We both loved Ben. He meant the world to both of us." She inched her way slowly around the counter as she spoke. "But he wouldn't want to see you like this. The way you are right now, so unhappy, so guilt ridden. He wouldn't want his being gone to affect us that way. He would want us to live, to move on with our lives. To be happy." She was standing right in front of him now. "Tommy," she said softly. "Look at me." He lifted his gaze slowly, his expression conflicted. How long had he been struggling with this? "Tommy, you're doing nothing wrong."

"Do you think I want to feel this way, Lindy? Like I'm committing some kind of crime? Like I'm betraying Ben? I'd turn off these feeling if I could, but I can't, Lindy. They're real." He said the last part so softly that Lindy wouldn't have been able to hear him if she wasn't so close.

"It's not wrong to feel this way, Tommy. You aren't committing some crime. You're being a human, and part of being one is to love." He sucked in his breath sharply and Lindy got the sense that Tommy had thought she would be angry or disgusted if he ever confessed his feelings to her. She felt her heart crack. She reached for his hand, slowly, and saw the tension ebb out slightly when she touched it.

"Ben wouldn't want us to be so unhappy, especially because of him. He's gone, Tommy. And even if it still hurts to think about him we have to move on. If we waited until the day when the pain of remembering him goes away we could be waiting a really long time. He would want you living your life." He was staring at the floor again. "When was the last time you truly let yourself feel, Tommy?" He said nothing, he was completely still, barely breathing. "You have to let go. Stop holding yourself back because of fear or guilt. Ben wouldn't want that and it's unfair to you. Just… be happy."

Tommy looked at her then. "Are you asking me to let go, Lindy?" his voice was low, and those hazel eyes she had grown to love were burning into hers.

She squeezed his hand almost imperceptibly, her gaze never wavering from his. "Yes."

Before she could think, before she could even blink, Tommy had bent down and was kissing her, almost crushing his lips to hers. Lindy cried out, but he soothed the sting with his tongue, kissing her softly. He wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him. Heat coursed through her as Tommy's kisses woke a hunger in her she hadn't known she was capable of. She slid her arms around his neck, tugging him closer, her body melting into his. Tommy gasped and Lindy realized that he had expected her to pull away from him, but that was the last thing she wanted to do. She _wanted_ this. She hadn't realized how long she had been waiting for this moment until now that it was actually happening. She stood on her tip toes, deepening the kiss, pulling him closer, eliminating any sliver of space left between them.

Tommy's neck was bent to kiss her. He was too tall and she was too short, but he didn't give a damn. It was perfect. They were perfect. Lindy's hands were tangled in his hair and he was holding her like he would never let go as he pressed her back against the counter. She slid her hands under his shirt, feeling the taut muscle underneath, the feel of her warm hands on him making him shiver. He hoisted her up onto the counter and just as he was leaning in to kiss her again she put a hand up to his chest, stopping him.

"I just have one concern," she said deadpan, breathing hard. He drew away from her, breathing just as hard, a million thoughts running through his mind. Had he misinterpreted what she'd said? Had he gone too far? He started to apologize, running his slightly shaking hands through his hair, trying to calm his pounding heart. She was like a drug and he needed her. "You don't care that I'm not a blonde?"

Tommy lowered his hands, slowly, looking at her utterly confused. "What?"

"You know, since you're only into blondes?" Tommy would have taken her seriously if he hadn't seen the twinkle in her eye.

Tommy laughed softly, feeling relieved and absolutely giddy. He leaned in, his lips softly tracing a line just below her ear, along her jaw, down to the hollow at her throat. "I think I can make an exception," he murmured against her skin. Unable to contain herself, she grabbed a fistful of his shirt and brought her lips down on his. She tugged him closer, making him lean into her, his hands on either side of her on the counter, boxing her in. Tommy smiled against her lips.

"Lindy," he breathed. He said her name like he had been searching his whole life for something and he had finally found it. Like it was the only thing that mattered. He deepened the kiss, letting himself get lost in the feel and taste of Lindy. He could feel her silky hair between his fingers and the way her body seemed to mold into his perfectly. Her hands trailed down the buttons of his dark blue button down, then slowly, very deliberately, she undid one button. Then another. And another.

He wanted this. God, he wanted her, but he wasn't going to let himself get carried away unless she told him that she wanted this- that she wanted _him_ too. He drew back from her, cold air replacing Lindy's heat. He swallowed hard, trying to sort through his muddled thoughts. All of them dominated by the ghost of Lindy's lips on his and the press of her body against his. "Are you sure about this?" he managed to ask.

Tommy's face was stripped of the hard front he usually wore. All she could see was the vulnerability he was always trying hard to conceal underneath. Her heart swelled. She placed a hand on either side of his face and leaned her forehead against his, holding his gaze, willing him to see that she meant every word.

"I trust you," she said softly.

Tommy felt the last piece of wall over his heart crack and crumble. Whatever happened, his heart was completely hers now. He picked her up, her legs wrapping around his waist and her hands sliding around his neck as he carried her to his room.

He set her down gently on the mattress. Lindy had managed to unbutton the front of his shirt so that it was hanging open, revealing his smooth chest, but the shirt was still buttoned up at the cuffs. She watched him, smiling coyly, as he undid them quickly, his gaze never leaving hers. Before he could fully remove it, Lindy reached out and slowly slid it off the rest of the way. His eyes fluttered shut as her fingers skimmed over his shoulders, his arms, and down his chest.

The leather jackets and button downs he wore did him no justice. She'd been able to see the swell of his muscles through the shirts he wore, but apparently he had been hiding his abs. Tommy caught her lips in his own, kissing her slowly, leaning into her. He broke away and tugged her shirt up over her head, dropping it on the floor beside his bed. He smiled gently as he slid the black strap of her bra down, slowly, before dropping a kiss onto her bare shoulder. He felt her shudder with pleasure. She captured his lips in hers, tugging gently on his lower lip. Tommy groaned wrapping an arm around her, pulling her closer. Lindy straddled him then, cradling Tommy's face in her hands, hips rocking against his, kissing him languidly.

She leaned in to him, pressing him back against the covers so that her hair made a curtain around them. All he could see were her dark eyes and red lips. She brushed her lips over his and drew back so that their lips were mere inches apart, teasing him. Tommy pressed his hand against her cheek, his thumb brushing over her cheekbone like he had wanted to do before. Lindy leaned into his touch and Tommy felt a surge of joy go through him. She bent over him then and parted his lips under hers, kissing him long and hard.

Tommy moaned her name, pulling her closer. She tugged on his leather belt trying to undo it with one hand while splaying her hand over his chest with the other. He flipped them over, kissing her in a line down her neck, mouthing her collarbone, his fingers trailing lightly down her sides just barely touching her, raising goosebumps. Their kisses grew more heated, their bodies moving against each other's until there was nothing between them but skin and heat. He kissed her with all the pent up feelings he had kept buried deep down for so long. He kissed her down her body, his tongue doing things that left her breathless, aching for more. She arched up into him as he gathered her against him.

Her hands were all over him, winding in his hair, on his back, down his chest, tracing him, memorizing him, exploring him. She lost herself in him. "Tommy," she said breathlessly. If his heart had been hammering before, the way she said his name and looked at him had it galloping.

He had never thought he'd be able to be with her like this. He never thought he'd be able to finally let himself feel. Let himself love her freely. Kiss her until he couldn't think and the scent of her pomegranate shampoo enveloped every one of his senses. Until his every last thought was dominated by Lindy.

X

Later that night when Tommy woke to Lindy's still form breathing deeply next to him, her warmth enveloping him, it all came rushing back. The streetlights filtered in through his closed blinds, mimicking moonlight, the soft glow illuminating her. She looked lovely. A small smile making the edges of her lips curl upward. He took her hand that was resting on his pillows and kissed it, intertwining his fingers with hers. "I love you," he told her softly. "And as long as I live I'm going to keep you safe."


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: You guys all deserve an apology. I know I'm not good at updating, but I took longer than I thought with this chapter. I knew it'd be a while before I updated because I needed to figure out where I was taking this story, and I've pretty much figured it out now, but I decided to at least leave you guys with Tindy. I didn't expect to take this long, but I'm back. I'm not abandoning this story. I have too much Tindy head cannon for that. :)**

 **You guys have been so patient and I'm glad that so many people, even though the show ended still really love this pair and their story and the story I've created out of some serious head cannon. Anyway thank you guys and here's the next chapter. Warning: serious Tindy fluff.**

The next morning Lindy slowly woke from a deep sleep, feeling comfortable and warm.

Slowly, she realized that she was wrapped in a warm pair of strong arms. She smiled as the events of the night before came rushing back. She turned in Tommy's arms to stare at his chest. He was still asleep despite the movement she'd made. His soft breath making the hairs at the top of her head move slightly as he breathed in and out. She smiled, stroking his hair back from his face, and slowly he woke.

When his hazel eyes met her chocolate ones, a smile crossed his lips. He held her tightly and put his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her pomegranate smell in deeply, even though it was already permanently ingrained in his mind. "Last night actually happened." His voice was still groggy from sleep, but it didn't hide the wonder in it.

She laughed softly, running her hands through his hair. "Yeah, it did."

"Good. I was afraid it was a dream," he murmured, tightening his arms around her. He thought last night had been too good to be true until he opened his eyes and saw her chocolate ones staring right at him. "I still can't believe it really happened."

She put a hand on either side of his face and looked deep into his eyes. "Well, believe it," she said before giving him a long, slow kiss, making Tommy feel as though his body had lit on fire. "Lindy," he moaned. She smiled, deepening the kiss, her fingers tangling in his hair.

He drew away from her reluctantly. "If you keep doing that there's no way I'm getting out of bed today," he joked, half serious.

"Is there really a need to?" He couldn't tell if she was kidding or not.

"Unfortunately, yes. I have work today, but I really wish I didn't," he said, running his eyes over her in a way that left her feeling warm all over. She brushed a thumb over his rough stubble which had long ago grown back in.

"Too bad. I don't have work today. Lucky for me." She started to draw away from him so that he could get ready, but Tommy leaned in and kissed her, and she forgot what she was going to do. He caught her bottom lip between his teeth and she groaned, running her hand down his chest. She broke away from him, knowing that if she didn't get out of bed now, there was no way she was going to be able to leave. He groaned, reaching out for her, but she dodged him. "No more. You've got work and the last Sophia saw of me I was storming out of our apartment, angry at you."

"Sophia's smart. I'm sure she figured out what happened and that you're safe," Tommy said, with a smug look on his face.

Lindy smacked her forehead and groaned. "Ugh, you're right. Oh, god. There's no way I'm going to be able to escape her endless questioning." Tommy grinned at her.

Lindy rolled out of bed, pulling the blanket around her to cover herself as she searched for her clothes, which were haphazardly lying around the room. She had just managed to find her shirt when she happened to glance up and saw Tommy still in bed, staring at her.

"What?" Lindy asked, clutching the blanket and her shirt to her chest with one hand while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, feeling self-conscious.

Tommy shook his head, his gaze never leaving her.

"What is it?" she pressed.

"Nothing."

Lindy walked up to his bed, standing right over him, a smile tugging on her lips. She shook her head at him. "Now you have to tell me."

Tommy bit his lip, his nose wrinkling slightly, debating whether to tell her or not. He looked cute when he did that Lindy thought. Tommy sighed, finally making up his mind, and in one swift motion he had grabbed her around the waist and pulled her onto the bed beside him. Lindy yelped in surprise, but the next thing she knew Tommy was leaning over her, his forearms on either side of her, caging her in, his hazel eyes holding a soft look in them as he looked down at her.

"What?" Lindy asked breathlessly.

"I was just thinking," he said, his voice low, "that you looked beautiful."

Lindy wrinkled her nose. "I'm covered by a rumpled blanket, I have a serious case of behead, and I'm looking around your room for my scattered clothes. How can I possibly look beautiful?"

Tommy shrugged. "I don't know, but all I can say is that you really really do. You look beautiful whether you're in a short navy dress, ready for a date, or in that black floor length dress you wore for the auction, or…" his gaze traveled down her body, "a bedsheet." He looked at her, wondering how on earth he had managed to go so long without kissing her. He didn't wait leaned down and kissed her.

Lindy sighed into the kiss. This was bliss. It had been a long time since she had felt this safe and comfortable with someone.

"You've been paying attention to me?" Lindy asked when they had finally parted.

Tommy took her hand, intertwining his fingers in hers, his grip gentle but firm. "Of course I have. It's hard not to. Even the smallest things you do call attention to you."

Lindy smiled before pulling him down on her and kissing him slowly. Tommy was sure that if somebody had held a gun to his head right then, and demanded to know what his name was, he wouldn't have been able to answer for the life of him, the kiss was so mind numbing.

He wrapped an arm around her, his lips tracing a line down her neck as he tried to tug the bedsheet lower, but Lindy held on to it firmly.

Lindy trailed her hands down Tommy's sides as he deepened the kiss. She finally broke away, leaning her forehead against his, her hand stroking the side of his face. Her eyes held so many emotions, so many words that it was as if she had actually said them to Tommy, he understood them all.

It was a promise of love and of more times like these between them. Not just in bed, but of easy banter, of support, and comfort, and playfulness. It was a promise for the future. Tommy nodded his head in understanding, placing a kiss on her forehead and another on her hand, before finally getting up and grabbing his pajamas that he kept in a drawer by his bed. He smirked when he realized he hadn't even worn them the night before. Lindy followed his lead, collecting the rest of her clothes and throwing them on.

When they were both dressed, they made their way over to Tommy's kitchen. He began to get ingredients for pancakes out of his fridge, while Lindy took a seat at Tommy's dining room table, leaning her elbows on it, watching him.

"I'm never going to be able to look at that counter the same way again," he told her, nodding his head toward it.

Lindy giggled. "Maybe later we can do a reenactment," she said smirking, looking at him with a look that sent his pulse skyrocketing. He turned back to the bowl in front of him so that she wouldn't see him blush and so that he could get the image of her the night before out of his head.

Boris came trotting into the kitchen looking as happy as his owner felt. He nudged Lindy's hand and she scratched him behind the ears happily. Tommy looked back and grinned at how normal it seemed to have Lindy sitting there in the morning with Boris, while he made them breakfast. Lindy caught him looking and smiled.

"Do you need any help with cooking?" she asked him.

He turned back to the stove quickly. "No, I'm good. You sit tight. This'll be ready in a minute."

She stared at his back suspiciously. There was something in his voice. It was the same tone of voice Sophia had used when Lindy had first moved in with her and had discovered how terrible a cook Lindy really was, but didn't want to hurt her feelings by telling her the truth. But Tommy had never had any of her cooking before, so he couldn't possibly know, unless Sophia had told him about it. "Are you sure?" she asked.

"Yup, I'm good." There it was again.

She remembered the night she had cooked dinner for Sophia and Connor just after she had moved in. She'd made dinner and Connor had eaten a few bites before making a face and heading for the bathroom. After he had been in there for a while without coming out, Sophia had taken Lindy aside and told her the truth. "Lindy, I love you. You're a great roommate, and an all-around amazing person, but you're a horrible cook. Please don't ever cook again."

Lindy had already known she couldn't cook. Her mom and Sara had teased her about it incessantly, saying that she was unteachable, so hearing Sophia say it, she hadn't taken any offense. But it sucked that she couldn't do something nice and make dinner once in a while.

"Tommy, do you know about my cooking skills?" Tommy said nothing although Lindy knew he had heard her. "You do know, don't you?"

Tommy sighed. He had never wanted to tell her he'd tried her tomato sauce that one time and how bad it was, but it seemed like he was going to have to. "Yes, I do."

"How?" she asked curiously. Grudgingly, he told her.

"You tried it?" she sounded more amused than upset.

"Yes." He flipped the pancakes over on the frying pan.

"How was it?"

He loved this girl, but he didn't think telling her that her cooking was horrendous was going to win him any points…but they had promised that they were going to be honest with each other.

Lindy looked at him expectantly.

"It was inedible." Lindy smiled in a way that made it seem like she was used to people criticizing her cooking.

She chuckled. "Yeah, I thought so too." Wait, what?

She must have seen the puzzled look on his face because she grinned. "Trust me, Tommy. You are _definitely_ not the first person that's told me anything bad about my cooking. It's why I rarely do it. The only reason I cooked that night was because Jake had cooked for me and my friends before and I took that as a challenge."

Tommy placed the finished pancakes on a plate for both of them and slid hers in front of her, along with the syrup and a mug of coffee. "Well, you don't have to try to cook to impress me. There's plenty of things that impress me about you that make up more than enough for your lousy cooking."

Lindy grinned, looking into his eyes. They stayed like that until Boris nudged Tommy's hand, breaking him from Lindy's magnetic pull. He fed Boris and then sat down across from her, pulling his own plate and mug of coffee in front of him.

"Oh, my God," Lindy said through a mouthful of pancakes. "These are absolutely amazing." Tommy smirked through his own mouthful of food. "Seriously, Tommy. Where did you learn to cook?"

"My mom made sure me and my brother knew how to cook before we moved out, and I picked up a few things here and there." He shrugged. "I don't always like to eat takeout."

Lindy raised an eyebrow. "You have a brother?"

Tommy took a sip of his coffee before answering. "Yeah, he's older than me. He's already married and has a kid."

Lindy's eyebrows were in danger of disappearing into her hairline. "You're an uncle?"

Tommy smiled fondly. "Yeah. My brother and sister in law have a cute blond haired, hazel eyed, four year old girl."

"Let me guess, "Lindy said smiling. "The blonde hair is the mother's and the hazel eyes are your brother's."

Tommy smirked. "Yeah. Hazel eyes run in my family."

"Do you see your family a lot?" Lindy asked curiously.

"Yeah, I see them every few months for Sunday dinner."

Lindy stared down at the table. "It must be nice," she said wistfully. Tommy glanced at her. She looked fine, but he could tell there was a lot of turmoil beneath the surface. That there was a sense of longing. That she wanted to have a family she could go to for Sunday dinners too. Maybe she still could.

"There's something I want to say," Tommy said at the same time that Lindy said, "I want to talk to you about something." They both stopped and stared at each other. Tommy laughed softly. "Ladies first."

"No you. I think mine will take longer."

"All right," Tommy said seriously. "When we were talking about Sara last night…" Lindy nodded, encouraging him to go on. "You're right. You do deserve answers. You've been waiting for them for a long time." He looked her right in the eye. "You should go to California and find your sister."

Lindy froze, her mug halfway to her mouth. "Really?"

"Yes." She smiled and it made Tommy realize how wrong it had been to keep her from doing this. "But I'd like to go with you. Like I said, we don't know what can happen and I don't want you to be alone to find out whatever it is that you find out. I want to support you. I want to be there with you every step of the way."

"Thank you." Lindy nodded. "And okay, you can come to California with me." Tommy grinned, happy. "If…" If? "You get a protective detail."

"Lindy-" She held up a hand, stopping him.

"Just hear me out, Tommy." He clamped his mouth shut. He knew how she could be. He didn't want her mad at him again. When he didn't say anything, she went on. "You know better than anyone how dangerous Bubonic is. I don't understand why you're being so stubborn and putting yourself in so much danger when you can have someone watching out for you. A protective detail is meant to keep a barrier between you and Bubonic. He's already knocked you out twice-three, if you count the Reconnoiter party."

"I know, thank you for the reminder."

"Stop being so stubborn, Tommy. You're putting your life at risk without having a protective detail. Sophia and I had one when Jake was terrorizing us."

"Yeah, and look how well that turned out. The killer turned out to be right under our noses."

"But we got a pretty good deal out of the whole thing," Lindy raised her eyebrows at him suggestively and he had to laugh.

She was right. The officers on duty had both fallen in love with the people they were supposed to be protecting. He and Yeager were complete goners. He quickly turned serious again. He could see no judgement in the way she was looking at him, just worry for his safety and complete trust. The words just poured out of him.

"I don't want a protective detail because it would be like waving a white flag at Bubonic. It would be like saying you won. I _am_ scared of you." Lindy felt her heart clench. She hadn't quite realized just how much of a psychological affect Bubonic had had on Tommy. She berated herself for not realizing it sooner. He always acted like nothing bothered him, but she had always felt like it was all just a front he put up.

"Tommy," she said, reaching over and taking his hand. "It's okay to feel scared. It's perfectly normal. I would be more worried about you if you weren't scared."

"But that's the thing, Lindy. I don't want to be scared. I don't want to live in fear."

Lindy got up and went over to his side of the table and wrapped her arms around him. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm scared too," she murmured into his hair.

"Why are you scared?" Tommy asked, squeezing her hand. "He's after me."

"And that's why," she said softly. It was a little weird to admit her feelings for him, but she realized that they had been there all along for some time now. It was the reason why she'd felt her chest tighten when Vivian wanted her out of the room at the hospital and the relief she'd felt when Tommy said they wouldn't work out. "I don't want to lose you, Tommy. I don't want Bubonic to take you away from me. I mean, after all, I just got you."

Tommy's breath hitched. He stood up and took her into his arms. "You're not going to lose me," he told her seriously.

"That's not really something you can keep your word on, Tommy. I've learned the hard way that you can always expect the unexpected."

Tommy pulled her close and buried his face in the crook of her neck, breathing her in. "I'll try my very best then," he murmured.

After a while he pulled away, his brow furrowed as he considered something. "You know," he said looking at her. "You're right. I am a giraffe. At least I especially feel that way when I'm with you."

Lindy smirked and pulled him closer so that their lips were only mere inches apart. "I wouldn't have it any other way." He leaned in about to close the remaining distance between them, but Lindy put her fingers to his lips, stopping him. "Not until you agree," she murmured.

Tommy sighed. He couldn't say no to her. She was looking out for him, and he knew that it was in his best interest, and her lips were right there. "Okay, I'll do it. I'll get the protective detail."

The way she grinned swept away any of his last fears and doubts. He knew he was doing the right thing. "You're perfect," he told her, leaning in to kiss her. The words coming out before he fully thought them through.

Lindy stiffened in his arms and he drew back. "I am not perfect," she said quietly, not looking at him. Tommy mentally cursed himself as he realized what was wrong. What he'd told her sounded like something that Jake would say.

"You're right," he said, looking into her eyes. "You're not perfect. You're completely reckless, you're stubborn as hell, and you never listen to me." Lindy frowned. Maybe she shouldn't have said anything. "But, you're also smart, you're beautiful, you're incredibly brave, and you'd do anything for the people you love." He tucked a piece of her dark hair behind her ear. "No, you're not perfect, Lindy. But you're my perfect."

Lindy stared at him completely stunned. Nobody had ever said something like that to her. Never. Then she realized something. "You were describing me that night at the club and at the art auction, weren't you?"

Tommy grinned, looking smug. "Sure was."

Lindy grabbed him by the front of his t-shirt and kissed him. Tommy smiled against the kiss, holding her tight against him.

"I love you," Tommy told her softly, earnestly, looking deep into her eyes, making her breath hitch. How was it that Tommy could turn her from a rational thinking human and into a puddle? Tommy took her silence as hesitation. "I don't want you to feel pressured into saying anything you don't mean just because I've had a long time to come to terms with how I feel about you. Tell me when you're ready." He felt deep in his heart that she would one day say it back.

She leaned her forehead against his. "The last thing I feel is pressured by you, Tommy." Tommy held her against him, just looking into those chocolate eyes that made everything else fall away.

The way Tommy smiled made her feel as though nothing else mattered.

Tommy chuckled softly. "What?" Lindy asked, feeling self-conscious.

"It's just…" Tommy chuckled again.

"What?"

"The thing is," he said, his eyes roaming over her face. "That before, I was always angry at myself for feeling like this about you because I felt like I was betraying Ben." Tommy paused. Lindy nodded at him to go on. "Now, I can't seem to shut up about how I feel about you. I tell you everything I'm thinking, when before… I couldn't even admit it to myself."

She brushed a piece of his hair back from his face, her face taking on a melancholy look. "How long have you known, Tommy?" She didn't have to elaborate. She wanted to know how long he had had feelings for her.

Tommy was quiet for a minute. "It's hard to say. When I saw you at the club, you looked so hypnotic under the lights, dancing without a care in the world, and I was already making my way to go and talk to you for m mission, when Ben came out of nowhere, and struck up a conversation with you." Tommy's eyes took on a faraway look and she knew he was being transported back in time. "To say I was mad would be an understatement…for more than one reason," he said, his eyes roaming over her face, "but I sucked it up. And then we started working together. When I saw you on dates with other guys and how much attention they gave you…it bothered me. I was jealous. Even though I had absolutely no right to be."

He looked down at their intertwined hands. "But I didn't know for sure until I got out of that ship and I saw you standing there on the other side waiting for me." He looked into her eyes. "I knew then I had feelings for you." And then it was confirmed by a psychic, but he didn't tell her that.

Lindy processed what he had just said. She had been relieved to see him get out of that ship safely. Insanely relieved actually, but she hadn't realized what it had meant at the time.

"Although you've irritated me and have caused me endless pain, it didn't matter. One day we were working together at the precinct. You were making a point about something or other and I looked over at you, and it just hit me. I was in love with you." He brushed his thumb across her cheekbone. "I didn't let myself accept my feelings, but when we kissed at that apartment… I knew I couldn't deny it anymore, even though I tried to. And then you were taken, and I went crazy when I saw that creep about to brand you."

Lindy flinched. She still got nightmares about that night. In them, Tommy never reached her in time. Seeming to sense this Tommy tightened his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. Lindy breathed in Tommy's smell, calming herself.

"I don't play by the rules when it comes to you, Lindy," he murmured. "I'd do anything and everything to get to you on time, to keep you safe. I want you to know that." Lindy nodded against his chest, feeling what he had always wanted her to be. Safe.

They stayed like that for a while, just holding each other until Boris, who was probably bored out of his mind from watching them, nudged his head between the two of them. They disentangled themselves from each other, laughing. "I have to go," Lindy said regretfully. "Sophia will be wondering where I am and you've got to get ready for work."

Tommy started to protest and lean toward her but she put her hands against his chest, pushing him back, although he hardly budged and she wasn't really trying. "Go shower and get to the Cyber Unit," she told him in a mock stern voice.

He raised his hands in surrender. "All right," he said, pretending to sound defeated. "I'll go." She turned to leave and just as she reached the door, he caught her wrist, spun her around and kissed her against the door. She smiled into his kiss as if she had expected this. She let herself get lost in Tommy's warmth, the feeling of their lips moving over each other's, and the press of Tommy's body against hers. Tommy broke the kiss first. "That was-" He couldn't seem to finish his sentence.

"Yeah." She glanced at the watch on Tommy's wrist and the time on it brought her out of her reverie. "Okay," she said, pushing him back. "Now I've really got to go and you really have to go get ready or you're going to be late."

He glanced at his watch too although he didn't appear fazed by what he saw, but he humored her. "You're right." He gave her another quick kiss and walked backwards toward his bathroom, his eyes never leaving her, a goofy grin on his face that she was sure matched hers. "I'll call you later," he told her just before he shut the bathroom door after him.

Lindy waited a beat, hearing the shower start, to make sure Tommy wasn't faking her out and would come rushing back to kiss her senseless again. When she was sure he wouldn't come out she crouched down in front of Boris, who she had already grown to love, and ruffled his neck. He licked her face happily goodbye, knowing she was leaving.

She finally made her way out of Tommy's apartment, but not the way she had been the night before, angry and hurt at Tommy, and fully intending never to come back. She knew now that she would definitely be coming back in the future.

She headed down the stairs feeling like she was floating and wondering how much she should tell Sophia. She just hoped that what had happened between her and Tommy wasn't written all over her face.

Just as she reached the second landing –there were five floors to the whole building and Tommy lived on the top one- she saw something out of the corner of her eye detach itself from the shadows and rush towards her. Instinct made her take a wild step back. Hands caught at the empty air where she had just been standing.

It was a man dressed in dark clothing and wearing a menacing expression on his face. Lindy didn't know who he was, but she didn't wait around to find out what he wanted. She turned on her heel and ran up the stairs she had just come down from, taking them two at a time. She could hear the stranger's heavy footfalls clomping up the stairs right behind her.

She felt fingers catch at the ends of her hair. Lindy's adrenaline was pumping. She still had another two floors to go, but she needed to slow the guy down and buy herself some time. As she rounded another flight she stopped and waited.

The man's footfalls were loud enough that he hadn't heard hers suddenly stop. As soon as she saw the man round the corner, she kicked her foot out as hard as she could. He had been going so fast that his velocity had carried him square into Lindy's boot. Her heeled boot connected with his chest, the force of the kick sending him sprawling on his back. Lindy turned and fled, running faster, pushing herself harder toward Tommy's apartment, her safe haven.

She was positive she had winded him and although that may have deterred most people she had seen the determination in his eyes. He was dead set on a mission. For her. But who could be after her? Who had sent him? Clearly, he had been waiting for her, but he was in Tommy's building. Had he been following her? No. The answer came to her almost immediately.

It was Bubonic. He must have been watching the building to figure out when to strike, and then decided to go after her? She wasn't sure what his plan was, but she knew she had to escape before she got into his clutches.

Just as she though that, Tommy's apartment door came into view. She felt an overwhelming sense of relief. She was so close. She put on a burst of speed. Her hand reached out for the doorknob.

Just as her fingers brushed it, she felt a sharp pain as she was yanked back by her hair. She cried out in pain. She half turned, her arms flailing, trying to punch her attacker. He caught her arms with one hand as he clamped his other one over Lindy's mouth, preventing her from screaming. The man pulled her roughly toward the stairs, trying to make his way down, dragging her along. Her mind turned into panic mode. She was about to be kidnapped.

She forced herself to calm down. She needed to come up with a solution. She found herself frantically thinking back to Tommy's self-defense lessons. _Take in the situation, and try to see if there's anything around that can be used as a weapon._ Her eyes darted around. There was nothing. Only a mirror on the next landing and a fake potted plant next to it.

When she had been in a bear hug at the museum, she had used her heel to break her attacker's foot. Right now she was in an awkward position, with her shoulder against the man's chest and her face almost pressed against it. She forced herself to stop flailing because as Tommy had told her, an attacker wants to tire out its victim. She needed all of her energy to get out of this situation. They were already heading away from Tommy's apartment. She needed to somehow alert Tommy about what was going on.

She needed to get her back against the man to escape using the bear hug. Despite her awkward position, she squirmed, managing to shift her weigh around, and managed to kick the man in the shin. She heard him let out a grunt of pain. She bit his hand, and on instinct he uncovered her mouth, swearing.

"Tommy!" She screamed now that her mouth wasn't being covered.

Too late, she remembered that he was in the shower and wouldn't hear her. She was getting desperate. The man tightened his arms around her, pinning them in place and punched her in the side, winding her.

"Shut up, you bitch," he hissed against her ear. "You're already enough trouble as it is. This was supposed to be easy."

Tommy's words floated in to her head from that self-defense lesson, which right now felt like a lifetime ago. _People will expect you to be an easy target because they think that they'll be able to overpower you. Prove them wrong._

Prove them wrong.

Lindy felt a wave of anger hit her. There was no way in hell she was going anywhere without a fight. She had already shown this guy that she was not an easy target. Well now she was going to make sure he never forgot it.

She heard Tommy's voice again. _Try to bang your head against their nose which should break it if you do it hard enough, the pain should make them lose their grip on you._

She squat down, and the man followed her down, trying to keep his hold on her. As soon as he did, she threw her head back and felt it connect with his nose. She heard a satisfying crunch and she knew she had managed to break his nose. Reflexively, he loosened his hold on her, howling, momentarily forgetting he wasn't supposed to draw attention to himself or the situation. Lindy broke free and elbowed the side of his head. The man fell. Lindy dashed toward Tommy's apartment. They had managed to make their way down a flight of stairs during the struggle.

"Tommy!" she screamed. "Tommy! Help me!" She knew he may not hear her, but maybe someone else who lived in this building would. It was still early. Some people would still be sleeping or just waking up. Someone had to hear her. They had to.

She'd just started up the stairs, when she felt something catch at her ankle, sending her crashing down onto the steps. Lindy felt instant pain as her body collided with the stone steps, her head smacking against them.

The man's face loomed over hers, a sneer on his face. There was a disturbing gleam in his eyes. Lindy felt a bolt of fear shoot through her. She knew then that she wasn't going to get away. She started to scream but the man placed a rag over her nose and mouth, and a sickly sweet scent invaded her senses. Chloroform.

The scream was trapped in her throat. The man lifted her roughly by the arm, her bruised body protesting. He grabbed her hair, making her look at him. The blood from his broken nose smeared his face and the cold, unforgiving expression in his eyes, making him look truly frightening. "It ends here," he hissed. He wrapped an arm around her neck and dragged her backwards.

She couldn't fight anymore. The chemical was making her mind foggy and her body heavy. She was on the edge of losing consciousness. She had to somehow let Tommy know that she had been taken.

Her hands went to her neck, pretending to scrabble at the man's hands to loosen his hold on her. The man pressed the rag almost savagely closer to her face, almost as though he wanted to cut off her oxygen. Black was creeping in at the edges of her vision, but she couldn't give in to it now. She needed to do this. She finally managed to unclasp her USB necklace, the one she never took off, unless she absolutely had to. Lindy hid it in her hand, and as they passed another landing, she let it fall.

Hoping to distract him from the clatter she was sure it would make when it landed, she summoned the last of her strength and kicked him hard on his shin, the same place as before.

" _Bitch_ ," he growled, but he sounded smug. "But don't you worry. I'm taking you to someone who'll know how to deal with you."

She could no longer feel fear, only numbness. Just before the darkness took over she heard the distant sound of barking.


	12. Chapter 12

**As you guys have probably noticed I like to leave off with cliffhangers. Wahaha. No seriously, you guys are amazing and incredibly** **patient. I do understand if you guys get frustrated when I take forever to update, but I'll finish the story, you guys can make sure of that.**

 **So sometimes I like to attach songs to chapters and chp 10's is Ellie Goulding's Love Me Like You Do. I just think that it describes Tommy's hesitancy with Lindy pretty well. Like with "you're the cure, you're the pain," etc. Chp. 5's is Demons by Skye Holland. Idk what you guys think. Just wanted to throw that out there I guess. Here's another chapter.**

As soon as Tommy shut off the water he knew something was wrong. He could hear the muffled sound of Boris' frenzied barking through the bathroom door. Tommy frowned. Frenzied wasn't a word he normally associated with his dog. Boris was always calm and well behaved, but frenzied was the only way he could think of to describe the way he was barking right now. He toweled off quickly and pulled on his pajamas that he'd left hanging on a towel rack. It was the closest, easiest thing to wear under the circumstances.

As soon as he got out of the bathroom he saw Boris snarling and banging himself against the front door. Tommy was completely taken aback. Boris never acted like this. The only other time he could remember him acting remotely close to this had been just after he had rescued him.

They were heading out of his building to take a walk to the park. Just as they had passed one of his neighbor's door, a small thump had come from inside. It could easily have been mistaken as the noise of a dropped object. Tommy started to walk away, but Boris wouldn't follow despite how many times Tommy called to him. He'd started acting the same way he was now. It turned out, that the old woman who lived there had had a heart attack and Boris' refusal to leave had saved her life. So Tommy knew better than to just brush off his dog's behavior now.

Tommy grabbed his gun, cautiously opening the door, and peering out, but Boris slid through the opening and took off running. "Boris!" Tommy yelled after him. His dog ignored him and kept running, barking the whole time, only reinforcing the idea that something was wrong. Boris never disobeyed him. Tommy ran after him, his gun in hand, Boris' barking guiding him. Just as he rounded another flight of stairs he heard a sharp bark come from Boris, making Tommy's pulse hammer in his chest. The barks were no longer frenzied, but a sharp bark came at intervals, as if Boris had found what he had been looking for.

There, on a landing, he could see his dog near a fake potted plant, and next to that, something that caught the morning light coming in through the skylight above.

Tommy stepped toward it cautiously, his bare feet making no sound as they approached the discarded object. He didn't recognize what it was until he was standing right over it. His breath caught when he realized what it was and a cold wave of dread filled him.

It was Lindy's necklace.

Lindy's necklace, which he knew for a fact she had been wearing when she had left his apartment earlier. He had never seen her without it. He had seen her use it and knew that it was important to her as a hacker. He wanted so badly to believe that she had accidentally dropped it, that it had come off and she hadn't noticed it had fallen, but he knew he was only kidding himself. Lindy may be reckless but she was not careless.

Either she had deliberately left it here for him to find or someone had torn it off her neck. His blood boiled at the latter, at the thought of someone hurting Lindy. But as he picked up the necklace and inspected it from every angle, he could see that the cable wasn't frayed or torn. The necklace had been unclasped at the front. It had to be the first option. She had dropped it here for him to find, but just in case…

He ran back up the stairs, Boris at his heels. In his apartment, he grabbed his cellphone from where he had left it on the coffee table the night before and dialed Lindy's number by heart. It went straight to voicemail. Tommy swore and with his heart thundering in his chest, he called it again with the same result. He could feel his chest tightening as he dialed another number.

"Sophia," he said as soon as she picked up.

"Tommy are you okay? You sound out of breath."

He ignored her question. "Is Lindy there?" He wasn't a religious guy, but he prayed to every deity he knew right then, that she was home safe with Sophia like she was going to do when she had left his apartment, but what Sophia said next shattered his hopes.

"No. I haven't seen her since last night. She left pissed off to go see you. And then when she didn't come back…"

Tommy could hear the suggestion in her voice, but his rising sense of panic was drowning out everything else. His heart was beating so hard it hurt, his mind flooding in panic.  
"You didn't piss her off again, did you? I thought for sure you two had made up last night," Sophia drawled.

Tommy hung up. He wasn't trying to be rude, but then again politeness wasn't his number one priority at the moment. He still had one more call to make before he could go on full on panic mode. There was one other place where she could possibly be.

"The world must literally be ending right now," George croaked. "I can think of no other reason as to why you interrupted my beauty rest and a rather lovely dream with Pascal, where we-"

"George!" Tommy cut in sharply. "Is Lindy there?"

"No," George said, sounding baffled by his tone. "Why? Did she say she was coming over?"

Tommy gulped. She wasn't there. "George, I need your help. I need you to meet me at the Cyber Unit." Tommy forced the rest of the words out despite how tight his throat felt. "I think Bubonic took Lindy."

X

"It seems that the security cameras in your building were cut around the time Lindy left your apartment." Yeager pointed to a still shot of Lindy on the monitor. It showed her at the end of the hall outside Tommy's apartment, headed toward the stairwell. "This is the last thing the cameras outside your apartment show just before they're cut, but they come back on fifteen minutes later." Yeager sighed dejectedly. "I'm sorry to tell you this Tommy, but the only people, besides Lindy, that have come in to your building live there. No one out of the ordinary or suspicious came in today or the night before."

They were both sitting at a workstation in front of the monitor at the precinct with George typing furiously on the computer next to them. They were all looking for Lindy. So far all they had was her necklace and her cellphone, which had been found discarded in a trash can outside of Tommy's building. The only fingerprints on it had been Lindy's.

 _This cannot be happening. This cannot be happening. This cannot be happening._ It was the only thing that kept running through Tommy's mind. As if he somehow repeated it enough it would end up being true. This had to be some kind of messed up nightmare where any minute now he would wake up and Lindy would be just a phone call away. But no matter how many times he tried to convince himself otherwise he knew he was only deluding himself. Bubonic had taken Lindy, but one thing Tommy knew for damn sure was that he was going to make him pay.

"Tommy? Tommy?!" Yeager was waving a hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention. "Don't get lost in yourself. We're going to find her. You can't sit here muddling in your anger. Lindy needs you right now."

Tommy shot up from his chair angrily. "You have absolutely no idea what I'm feeling right now, Yeager. Tell me. How would you feel if Bubonic had kidnapped Sophia?" Yeager flinched. "Tell me that you would not be sitting here doing the exact same thing, imagining what you would do to the bastard if you have him in front of you." Tommy's hands were balled at his sides. He was so angry he was shaking. "You have no idea what it's like to finally tell someone you love them and they seem to reciprocate those feelings… only to have her taken away from you." He said the last part softly that Yeager almost didn't catch it.

"You're right. I don't know what you're going through. And you know what? I hope I never do, but don't take your anger out on me. Remember who the real enemy here is, Tommy. I want to help you. I _am_ helping you. And I'm always going to help you." Yeager placed a hand on Tommy's shoulder, knowing it wouldn't calm him the way Lindy's touch did. "Remember that." He looked Tommy straight in the eye. " _We will find her_. Don't doubt that, okay? You just need to focus." Tommy nodded stiffly, his jaw clenched. Yeager dropped his hand and turned back to his computer, trying to find a trace, a clue, anything, that would lead them to Lindy.

Tommy turned to see George typing on his computer with a ferocity he wouldn't normally associate with him. He was completely in the zone. He walked over to him slowly, not wanting to startle him. "How are you doing George?" Tommy asked him.

"How does it look like I'm doing?" George said without looking up. "My best friend got kidnapped…again, and I haven't been able to find a single trace of her." Tommy flinched at George' choice of words. He knew George wasn't being mean, he was just angry and worried, like him, but what really bothered him was what George seemed to imply, like they weren't going to find Lindy any time soon.

"We're going to find her," Tommy said roughly. "We have to."

"Well of course we are." George swiveled around in his chair and glared at Tommy. "I'm using every single hacking skill I know to look for her. There isn't anything I wouldn't do to find her…" He trailed off, his fingers tapping out an angry rhythm on his knee. Tommy was trained to read people and he could tell that George was using his anger to hide the fact that he was scared.

Tommy placed a hand on George's shoulder. George looked up at him reluctantly. "We're the same there," Tommy said softly. "There isn't anything I wouldn't do to find her too."

George looked at him steadily. "You love her." It was a statement not a question. Briefly, Tommy wondered how many people had been able to tell how he felt about Lindy before he had even admitted his feelings to himself. Clearly, he hadn't been as good at hiding his feelings as he had thought. Even Bubonic had figured it out. _Anyone half-awake, can see how much you care about that girl._ The psychic told him. Tommy had been skeptical, but clearly she had been right.

"Yeah, I do," Tommy said, before turning on his heel and heading to his computer to do his own search on Lindy.

He could hear George's clatter on the keyboard before he had even sat down.

X

They had been working for a while when Sophia came in, looking frantic, with Connor at her heels. It had fallen on Yeager to tell his girlfriend the reason for Tommy's phone call that morning, wondering where Lindy was. Yeager was the best person for that kind of news because he knew how to make Sophia feel better.

As soon as Yeager caught sight of her, he made a beeline for her and put a protective arm around her, leading her to a chair. She sat down reluctantly, looking upset. Yeager and Connor exchanged a few words. Yeager then crouched down in front of Sophia and took her hands in his, saying something to her, surely trying to assure her that everything would be okay. Tommy felt a twinge as he looked at the easy way they were able to show their affection for one another and the way Yeager was able to comfort Sophia. They talked for a bit, Sophia looking calmer, before she nodded in understanding, and Yeager got up and went back to his computer.

Tommy turned back at his own. He hadn't been able to find anything so far. George had told him that when Lindy had been taken by Jake, she had been the one to contact him, telling him where they were going to be. He hoped now that Lindy would be able to do the same this time, but it was unlikely Bubonic would give her access to a computer, knowing her skills.

"Tommy?" Tommy jumped at the sound of his name, bringing him out of his reverie. He whirled around to see Sophia standing behind him.

He exhaled slowly. "Hey, Sophia." She smiled wanly. Her arms were suddenly around him, squeezing him hard, before he even knew what was happening. He didn't know if it was for his benefit or hers, but he hugged her back just as hard. She pulled away as her eyes searched his face, taking in his deep frown, his rumpled clothes, and his hair that was in slight disarray. Tommy ran a hand through his hair, feeling self-conscious. He had grabbed the first things he could find in his closet and hadn't even bothered to run a brush through his hair. Sophia wrinkled her nose, looking almost fond, before reaching into her purse and pulling out a mini hairbrush, and began running it through his hair.

"Sophia…"

"Shhh, let me do this." He clamped his mouth shut. When she was done, she put her brush back into her purse and pulled a chair closer to him. "I know what happened between you two."

He didn't have to ask what she meant. He knew that she was talking about him and Lindy last night. "How?" he asked, feeling his chest tighten.

"When she didn't come back, I knew." She fixed him with a serious look. "She isn't one for random hookups, you know."

Tommy could only nod, his throat felt too tight to answer. He simply turned back to his computer and went back to searching for her.

He tried typing in a command, but nothing happened. He tried again, but still nothing. Suddenly, codes appeared in green on his computer and cascaded down quickly, like a waterfall. He knew this behavior. He typed in more commands, trying to regain control of the system, but it was useless. Yeager and George as well as the rest of the team of people searching for Lindy were having the same trouble. He could hear their protests as they lost control of their computers.

Connor walked closer to them, uncertainly, wondering what was going on. Sophia looked around, confused. "Tommy, what's happening?"

"Tommy," George called. "We're losing control of the system."

"I know," he answered back. He stopped typing. This was Bubonic taking control. Bubonic was doing this because he had something to say to him and Tommy needed answers.

"Tommy…" Yeager began.

"It's okay. Bubonic has something to say. I want to hear what it is."

Catherine came out of her office, the unusual activity alerting her that something was wrong. She had allowed Tommy to use all of the resources of the Cyber Crimes Unit and to lead a team to search for Lindy as soon as he told her what had happened. "What's going on here?" she demanded.

Before anyone could answer, the image on the monitor changed and Bubonic appeared, his plague doctor mask in place.

Catherine stiffened. Yeager walked over to Sophia and put an arm around her, keeping her close, as if Bubonic would reach through the monitor and whisk her away. Connor looked alarmed, and George's face was one of pure hatred which probably mirrored Tommy's.

Bubonic surveyed the room slowly, shrewdly, before his eyes finally landed on Tommy, a wide grin spreading across his face. "Well hello, Detective Calligan."

If he had been physically in front of him there was no telling what Tommy would have done to him. "Where is she?" Tommy turned. George was leaning on the desk beside him, staring hard at Bubonic. "Where is she?" George asked again.

Bubonic calmly turned his gaze to him and smiled. "Ah, yes, George Reyes. I remember you. A real shame that you left my organization. You were a very promising hacker."

George looked disgusted. "Did you really think that I would keep working for you when I found out who you really were? I'm glad Lindy told me when she did."

Bubonic shrugged and turned his attention back to Tommy, clearly not interested in that conversation. "Where is she?" Tommy demanded, before Bubonic could say anything else.

Bubonic tilted his head at him and smiled slowly. "She's safe…for now."

"What have you done with her? Why the hell did you even take her?" Tommy growled. "Your problem is with me, not her."

Bubonic gave a low laugh. "This is the reason why. Your reaction alone." The smile dropped from his face suddenly. "I wanted you to experience what I felt when you took Melanie."

Tommy's breath was coming out in shallow bursts, he was almost hyperventilating. _This cannot be happening._ But he knew with a sickening feeling that it was. "She has absolutely nothing to do with this, Bubonic. Your problem is with _me_ , not her. Let her go and I'll give myself up to you."

"Tommy, no!" Sophia cried suddenly.

Bubonic's attention turned to her. "Sophia. Lindy's roommate and best friend, right?"

Sophia gave him a withering look. "How do you know that?"

He leaned in closer so that his mask filled the screen. "I'm a hacker. I find out as many things as I can. I find out what I need to know." Connor and Yeager pulled Sophia behind them, blocking her from Bubonic's view.

"Leave her out of this," Tommy told him in a low voice.

"You're right. She is of no interest to me." His eyes drifted back over to Tommy. "But Lindy is. How do you think Lindy felt when the man I sent took her? Do you think she was filled with terror? Left wondering where you were to help her when surely you had told her you were going to keep her safe? Do you think she thinks that you have failed her?"

Tommy felt every word cut into him. He had told her many times that he wouldn't let anything happen to her, that he would keep her safe. He had told her that just last night and just this morning. _"As long as I live I'm going to keep you safe."_ He had failed her.

When Tommy said nothing, Bubonic continued, sounding disturbingly thrilled. "I recorded what happened. I thought you might like to see it, Tommy." His face disappeared and another image took over. It was the missing security footage from his building.

On the screen was Lindy, shutting the door to his apartment, looking fine, a smile tugging at her lips. Cameras followed her down to the second flight of stairs from the bottom. Suddenly, a figure unglued itself from the shadows and lunged at her. Lindy seeming to have sensed danger, leaped back before he could grab her. Tommy's breath froze, his horror coming hours too late. Even though he knew what was going to happen, he hoped that Lindy would get away as he watched what had happened that morning unfold.

He watched as she ran, taking two steps at a time, trying to put as much distance between her and her imminent danger as possible. He watched as she fought like hell and how the bastard grabbed her by the hair just as she had made it back to his apartment, and Tommy heard too late her scream of pain. The sound felt like a blade going through his heart.

He watched as she wouldn't give up and felt a twinge of pride as she was able to get him off of her and even break his nose, but it was short lived as he saw the rest of the scene unfold. He felt the wind go out of him as if somebody had punched him in the gut when she screamed, _"Tommy! Tommy! Help me!"_ She did everything right, but it was the rag over her mouth as she laid on the steps, trying to make her way back to his apartment, that finally put an end to everything. She had fought so hard and it was a damn rag with a chemical that had determined the outcome. He watched as the man half carried, half dragged her away and then the image blinked off, returning to Bubonic's smug face.

The entire Cyber Crimes Unit was silent, everyone having watched what had happened. Tommy couldn't get enough air into his lungs. He glanced over at George. He looked absolutely shell shocked as did Sophia with tears in her eyes, Yeager's jaw was set tightly, his arm wrapped tightly around her, and even Connor looked at a loss for words.

"You bastard," Tommy growled.

Bubonic only smirked. "Maybe now you understand how helpless I felt when I found out that Melanie had died."

Tommy was stricken. Lindy shouldn't have suffered for something that only pertained to him. It was all his fault. "What can I do so that you'll let Lindy go?" Tommy asked him, defeated.

He heard Catherine make an indistinct noise behind him, but he ignored it, staring hard at Bubonic. It was directly against their policy to make deals with criminals, especially with one as deranged as Bubonic, but he wasn't following any rules right now. This was personal.

"For now…nothing. I'm going to keep her as long as I want. You see, you involved Melanie when the problem was only between me and your Cyber Crimes Unit, so now I'm going to do the same. At least I'm giving you the courtesy of knowing where she is. I had no idea where Melanie was until it was too late."

"Courtesy!" Tommy exploded. "You call this courtesy? You _kidnapped_ her and now you're only rubbing it in my face. I'm willing to make a deal with you, but you won't go for it. This is just you gloating. Now I'll give you the courtesy to have you return her, unharmed, and maybe we'll cut you a deal."

The room was quiet, everyone holding their breath. Bubonic stared at him steadily, Tommy refusing to look away. Suddenly Bubonic burst out laughing, but it was a laugh with no humor in it. "It's so sweet, you know. How concerned you are for her and yet you still manage to keep that bad cop façade, although there are definitely cracks in it now. The best I can hope for out of this is that maybe you'll cut me a deal? Well the answer is no. No deal. For now, I'm keeping her, but we'll keep in touch, Detective."

The screen went blank.

"No!" Tommy screamed, pounding his fist against the desk. "No, no, no!" He barely felt as Yeager and George pulled him back toward Catherine's office. He managed to shake them off and strode out of the precinct, ignoring everyone's calls for him to come back. He felt as if he stayed there one more minute he would suffocate.

Usually the fresh air calmed him, but now his chest was tight with the feeling that something terrible would happen to Lindy if he didn't find her soon. He had to find her. He had to. There was no knowing what Bubonic would do to her. He was a sociopath and hell bent on revenge.

 _This is all my fault._ He should have kept her at a distance so that Bubonic wouldn't have known how important he was to her. _This is all my fault._ He should have kept a better eye out for him. If only he had agreed to the protective detail sooner. If only. _This is all my fault._ He walked quickly down the street, almost running, trying to keep his fears at bay, and ignore the gnawing feeling in his stomach.

He had broken his promise to her…again.

X

Lindy woke up, her mind foggy, the world slowly coming into focus in front of her. Her head throbbed slightly, a lingering affect from the chloroform. Her memories came whooshing back. Her leaving Tommy's apartment, heading for her own, and then the attacker coming out of nowhere, her struggle, and then managing to drop the necklace just before everything went black.

Her only hope now was that Tommy had found her necklace and that they were searching for her. _I will never stop looking for you, Lindy._ The words came rushing back to her. They had been used in another time and in another place but she hoped—she _knew,_ that they would still apply now. Tommy was going to keep his word. If only she could get her hands on a computer to speed up the process.

She grit her teeth, trying to ignore the throbbing in her head and the prickly feeling that she was being watched, despite the fact that no one was in the room with her. She patted her pockets, but of course they had taken her phone away. Her eyes scanned the room, taking in the crumbling brick walls, the cement floors, and the low ceiling. There wasn't much except for the cot she was lying on, two plastic chairs lying in a corner of the room, and an array of moldy looking boxes. She must be in some kind of an old storage room. The door was in front of her, but she had no doubt that it was locked. It brought the memories of waking up in the asylum on Hart Island full force. She suppressed the nightmarish memories with a shudder, scanning the ceiling for surveillance cameras. There were none that she could see, but she had no doubt that they were there.

She sat up on the cot, clasping her hands. She might as well alert whoever was watching her that she was awake.

Fifteen minutes later, she heard footsteps outside approaching her room. She waited patiently, already knowing who was going to come in through the door.

She wasn't disappointed.

What surprised her was that he wasn't wearing his mask. Although, she guessed it made sense. She had already seen him without it before. He had shown her his face willingly. He smiled when he saw her sitting on the cot, twiddling her thumbs. She was not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her scared. She was going to let her anger control her actions, and luckily for her, she had enough of that.

"Hello, Lindy," he greeted.

"Bubonic."

He headed to the corner of the room where the chairs were lying, lazily picked one up, and set it down in front of her. He slid his hands along the back of it as he made his way around it, before finally sitting down, never taking his eyes off her.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. "Are you going to tell me why I'm here or are we just going to sit here staring at each other all day?"

He regarded her calmly, amused, before chuckling. "Oh, Lindy. How did I forget what a delight you were?"

Her hands curled into fists. She wanted to just knock him from his chair and beat him senseless for all that he had done, but she restrained herself. Instead she asked, "Why am I here?"

His fingers drummed out a rhythm on the arm of his plastic chair as he answered her. "You're here because I want revenge on Tommy, but you already knew that. But what I really want is to make him suffer the same way he made me suffer when he took Melanie." He leaned in close to her, crowding her space. She wanted to scoot away, but she made herself stay still. She was not going to back down and show him she was afraid of him.

"You know I spent an entire day searching for Melanie?" he said softly. "Amanda, my most trusted worker, tried to convince me that Melanie had left me, but all of her clothes were still in her apartment. Curious, I pressed her as to why she thought Melanie was never coming back and she slipped." His voice turned cold. "I made her tell me everything and she admitted that she had gone to the Cyber Crimes Unit and given them some sensitive information on some of the work I'd done and how she was the one who had told them about Melanie in the first place." He paused then, his eyes faraway and glittery with something dangerous. "After I found out that she had betrayed me—I killed her." He fixed her with a look that appeared slightly deranged to Lindy. "She betrayed me. I trusted her and she betrayed me." He leaned back in his chair, pressing a hand to his face as if trying to press the memories out. "This is what you and I have in common, Lindy. The people we grow to trust end up betraying us in the end."

"That's where you're wrong," she said forcefully, her heart was hammering in her chest, but she kept talking. "We have nothing in common. Tommy may have kept something about Sara from me, but he earned my trust back. I trust him completely."

He clenched his fists. "They're all liars. They lie once and there's no turning back from that. What's to stop them from doing it again? That's why you have to get rid of them before they get another chance to do it."

Her mind was running a thousand miles a minute. She thought about what he had just said. How he had to get rid of people as soon as they lied. He was a very paranoid person. And suddenly she knew.

"It was you," she said horrified. "You threatened Melanie. You told her that if she ever betrayed you, that if she didn't remain loyal to you, that if she didn't keep your secrets…you would kill her, didn't you?"

Bubonic stared at her, silent, unblinking, his breath coming fast. Lindy knew then that she had hit the nail on the head. "You don't know anything," he said softly, an acrimonious undercurrent in his words.

"But it's true, isn't it? That was why she killed herself. She was afraid that she would slip up and would have to face you afterward. She killed herself rather than to have you kill her."

He stayed silent, but Lindy knew she was getting to him from the bulging vein in his neck from his suppressed anger.

"It wasn't Tommy's fault," she continued. "You just needed someone to pin the blame on because you can't admit to yourself what you did. You can't face the real truth."

"Shut up!" he screamed suddenly, leaning into her. Lindy stared at him, refusing to back down. He took a deep breath, calming himself, and leaned back in his chair, studying her. "What happened," he said slowly, "is not your concern. I'm here to talk about something else with you." When Lindy said nothing, he continued. "You are a very talented hacker, Lindy, full of potential, and I would like you to work for me."

"You want _me_ to work for _you_?" She was sure she hadn't heard him right. What he was asking her was absolutely ridiculous.

"Yes."

Cold anger and disgust filled her. "What makes you think that I would ever work for someone like you?" she said coldly. "Especially after everything you've done. You hurt Tommy, you kidnapped me, you killed Richard, and who knows how many other people." A small smile tugged at his lips, which only served to infuriate her more. "I would _never_ work for you."

Bubonic tapped his fingers together, unable to hide his grin. "Oh, Lindy. Have you already forgotten that you were going to work for me once?"

She tensed. "I thought you had something that I needed then, but I was wrong. It was a lie."

"Orchestrated by your friends in Cyber Crimes." His voice oozed smugness.

"True. But unlike you, I can learn to let things go." He was silent for a while seeming to contemplate something.

"What makes you think that I don't have something that you would need now?"

Lindy's breath froze, her mind going a mile a minute, although she forced her face to stay impassive. What could Bubonic possibly have that she would need? She already knew Sara's approximate location. Was there something that he could have uncovered about her whereabouts that she hadn't? She shook herself mentally. No. The information she had on Sara had been very difficult to obtain, and as much as she hated to admit it, the reason she had it was only because of the video Jake had given her.

"There's nothing that I would want from someone like you, _Derek_."

Derek stilled, his eyes widening slightly, caught off guard, but then he laughed softly. "My, well you have been busy, haven't you?" He looked like he was almost proud of her. "You managed to figure out my real identity. Impressive."

"You weren't careful enough. You've become arrogant and careless," she said. He had shown her and Tommy his face despite the great lengths he went to hide it from others, thinking they wouldn't have connected the dots.

Derek shrugged. "If it serves a purpose, it's fine." He seemed nonchalant, but Lindy knew he was filing that information away in his mind. "But onto what you want. You need that thing that fills your days, isn't that right?" He said slowly, deliberately, knowing exactly where he was going with this. "You want your sister."

There was no way she could deny it. She had joined his organization back when she had thought he was J.J to find her. "Of course I want my sister," she said, wondering with dread where he was going with this. "But there's nothing more you can tell me that I don't already know. She was kidnapped and she disappeared," she said bitterly, thinking how Sara had actually left, not been taken, like she had thought for so long, but there was no way she was going to tell him any of the new developments she had found out about Sara. There was no knowing what he would do with that information.

His smile was outright wolfish by now, making Lindy grow uneasy. "What would you do if I told you I knew exactly where she was?" Lindy's breath lodged in her throat. He knew where she was? She looked into his eyes in disbelief. He looked amused, yet serious. If he knew where Sara was then she was in danger, and Derek would use her as a pawn in whatever twisted game it was he was playing.

"You don't know where she is," she said with forced conviction.

Derek reached into a pocket inside his coat and pulled out a tablet, handing it to her. "Here."

Lindy held it in her hands, simultaneously wanting and not wanting to see what was in it. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

He nodded at it. "Turn it on." Gone was the smugness and humor, he was utterly serious now, completely down to business. She wondered what would happen if she slammed the tablet in his face and tore out of here, but she knew that was foolish. No doubt there was a guard stationed outside the room and would grab her as soon as she took one step out the door.

Grudgingly she pressed the power button and the tablet came to life. An image of what could only be from a security camera showed someone in a room very much like hers. She was a girl, in her late teens, pounding on the door to the room she was obviously locked in. "Let me out!" she shrieked. "Let me out!"

Lindy's breath froze when she realized that she recognized her. She was taller than the last time she had seen her. Her hair was dark and cut short, but nevertheless, she recognized her. She _knew_ that girl the same way she knew her reflection in the mirror.

She looked up into Derek's smug face, horrified. She could still hear the girl's panic stricken screaming and the pounding of the door to her room through the tablet.

"Sara?"


	13. Chapter 13

**No I haven't forgotten about this story. It's pretty much impossible for me to. I'm sorry I was away for so long, school got crazy and this story got put in the backburner for a while, while I concentrated on school, but I won't be disappearing for that long anymore. I feel like I left you guys like the show did to us with that huge cliffhanger about Sara at the end.**

 **This chapter and some of the next was hands down the hardest ones I've done so far. It's just we never got too much background on Sara and the way I wanted Lindy to react was hard to pin down since there's so much emotion there, so if anything seems a bit off I'm sorry.**

 **It's been over a year since I first put up this story and longer since I got the idea for it, so I'd like to thank you all who've been commenting, following, favoring, and just reading this story since the beginning to up till now and whoever comes along next. Thank you guys. You've shown me that I can really write if set my mind to it.**

 **Just one other thing. I'll be posting the next chapter within two weeks hopefully sooner, since it seems unfair for me to leave you guys in a cliffhanger for so long about what happened to Lindy, then Sara, and this next little thing ;)**

"Why do you have my sister?" Lindy screamed at Derek, shooting to her feet, not bothering to hide the fear and anger she had been trying hard to suppress. "How did you get her? How did you find her?"

He raised his hands up as though shielding himself from her or making a "calm down" gesture, she wasn't sure which. "All excellent questions, Lindy," he said, leaning back leisurely in his chair, his arms crossing over his chest.

"Then answer them," she said, her voice sharp as a blade.

Derek shook his head as if he couldn't believe how impatient she was being.

"Answer me!" she demanded.

"You see," he began slowly, ignoring her furious gaze. "You weren't the only one searching for your dear sister all these years." He paused as if contemplating how much to tell her. Lindy dug her fingernails into her palms to keep herself from screaming at him to hurry up. "I have a very powerful…associate, if you will. He's been searching for Sara as long as you have."

Lindy ground her teeth together. _He_ was the whole reason that Sara had fled in the first place. _He_ was the threat so powerful that had made Sara fake her own abduction. _He_ was the one that she hated more than anyone else in the world for breaking the remainder of her family apart.

"Who is he?" Lindy demanded, her voice choked with fury. "Tell me!"

Derek smirked, clearly amused. "You're a feisty one aren't you? I can see why your Detective Calligan fell in love with you. You two have much in common." Lindy felt as though he had kicked her in the stomach, winding her at the mention of Tommy.

"Leave him out of this," she spat.

"Oh, but I can't do that, Lindy. To me he is a personal matter I have to deal with in order to get on with the rest of my plan against the government. He's an inconvenience I can't overlook. I need to eliminate him."

"Killing Tommy and bringing down the government isn't going to bring Melanie back, Derek."

His eyes turned cold. "That isn't your concern. Whatever way I decide to avenge her is my choice. It will be my way of showing my patriotism to this wretched country. I will bring it to its knees."

Lindy took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down, biding her time. Derek wasn't going to tell her anything if she continued to antagonize him, but she would stop him. She had to.

Derek looked at her expression. "It's okay, Lindy," he said seeming to interpret her look as one of sorrow. "My problem is with Tommy and the rest of the government. No harm will come to you or your beloved sister…on one condition." Lindy knew that if she agreed to anything Bubonic said it would be like selling her soul to the devil… but it had always been that way when it came to her little sister.

"What's the condition?" she said flatly.

"Work for me. There's something big I'm planning that I could use your talents in." His eyes were shining with the idea. When she said nothing he continued. "I'm going to bring down the entire nation's grid."

"You can't do that," Lindy said, horrified. "You'll be taking down the traffic grid, the electricity, the systems that bring our water—everything—the country will come to a standstill.

"Exactly," Derek said, looking almost gleeful.

"You can't do that," Lindy repeated. "They already know your real identity, _Derek_. It's only a matter of time before they find you."

He chuckled softly. "Oh, but I can do it, and I need you to help me—if you want to see your sister again and keep her out of harm's way. You wouldn't want anything to happen to her now would you?"

Lindy glared at him. Derek grinned, already knowing her answer. "Besides, whatever consequences that come from the country's power outage will be my concern, not yours. I'll claim complete responsibility for everything so you won't be implicated in any way. So what do you say, Lindy?"

She felt her stomach clench, knowing she was being used—again.

She nodded stiffly. "I'll do it," she said softly. She had just sold her soul to the devil, but she had to have faith in herself. She would get her and her sister out of this hell, save Tommy, and sabotage Derek's plan. She had to.

"Wonderful," he said standing up. He looked absolutely delighted, as if she'd just agreed to having a cup of tea with him. "Follow me."

"Where are we going?" she asked suspiciously.

Derek smiled at her. It almost looked genuine. "We're going to see your sister. Maybe this will show you that I am sincere in my offer and it will help keep you in line."

Lindy clenched her jaw, but followed him out into the hallway without another word.

She had been right. There were people watching her. There was a guard stationed right outside her door who stood ramrod straight as soon as he saw Derek come out of the room.

They walked down a hallway and she turned her head this way and that, taking in her surroundings. They walked over cracked cement floors and passed flaking plaster walls. The ceiling was vaulted and it was cold, which further convinced her that they were in a warehouse. Were they in the same one that Amanda had worked in? Had Amanda ever actually told Tommy and the Cyber Unit where the warehouse was located? If she could somehow get her location to Tommy, then he would be able to find her and Sara.

She needed to get her hands on a computer.

It seemed that despite the warehouse's dilapidated appearance it was actually outfitted with several high-tech security cameras that seemed to monitor their every move, meaning that there must be a control room somewhere in the building.

She needed to get to it.

They finally reached a door down another hallway after turning right then left from where she had been held. Lindy made a note of it.

Derek placed his hand on the knob, but before he turned it he looked at her. She wanted to scream at him to open the door already. If Sara was on the other side of that door she wanted to see her now, but she held herself together. "Remember, Lindy. You work for me now. Whatever you do from now on not only affects you, but Sara as well. If you want your dear sister to be safe, you'll behave and do as I say."

Lindy swallowed through the lump in her throat and managed to nod. He smiled at her. "Good." He took out his plague doctor mask from a pocket inside his coat and secured it to his face. Lindy couldn't help but roll her eyes despite the situation. Sara must still not know who he really was and he didn't want any more people to know his identity than was absolutely necessary.

He turned the knob and let the door swing open.

Lindy's eyes roamed around the room. It looked just like hers, dim lighting and all. When her eyes finally landed on her she felt the wind rush out of her.

There she was sitting on her cot, staring at her clasped hands, her posture stiff, her short, dark hair shielding her face.

Her head whipped up when she heard them come in, her hair falling away from her face as she shot to her feet, her face a mask of fury, but there was fear in there as well, although she did a good job of hiding it. The only reason Lindy could tell was because she had seen that look mirrored in her own.

"What the hell do you want?" she spat, zeroing in on Derek when she caught sight of his mask and ignoring her. "You already kidnapped me. Did he send you for me?" The way she said _he_ , was filled with absolute venom. "Let me go," she said fiercely, although Lindy could hear the trace of desperation in her words. Lindy felt frozen. She could do nothing but stare at her sister.

She had been searching for her for so long and yet, she could say or do nothing.

Derek didn't bother to hide his wolfish grin, ignoring the girl's ranting, turning to look at Lindy's face instead.

"Sara," Lindy whimpered.

Sara whipped around to face her, ready to spit fire at her too, but froze, her face paling when she realized just who it was that had said her name.

Sara looked like she had seen a ghost, and in a sense, she had.

Sara reached out to touch her, her eyes wide, as if she couldn't quite believe Lindy was really there and she wanted to make sure she wasn't just an illusion. "Lindy?" her voice wavered. She took a step closer to her. "Lindy?"

Lindy nodded rapidly, her eyes filling with tears. Sara threw herself into Lindy's arms, burying her face into her neck, like a toddler. Lindy immediately wrapped her arms around her sister, hugging her fiercely, tears streaming down her face.

"Sara," Lindy whimpered again, her voice muffled by Sara's shoulder. "Sara." She couldn't stop saying her name. She said it as if it were a mantra she had to live by, and she supposed, she had been living by it for almost four years. She could hardly believe that Sara was in her arms at last.

"Lindy," Sara gasped, as if it pained her to say her name.

Lindy only hugger her tighter, afraid that if she loosened her hold on her sister she would turn into smoke and disappear once again.

"Quite a touching reunion this is," Derek's voice cut through their bubble, popping it. Lindy glared at him, but didn't let go of her sister. She was half angry with herself because she had forgotten he was even in the room with them.

"Now, now," he chuckled, noticing her death glare. "There's no need to be hostile, Lindy. I'll give you two time alone to talk." He turned his gaze to Sara, almost accusingly. Lindy pulled her closer as if to shield her from him. "You two have much to discuss," he said pointedly to Sara and with that he walked out of the room.

Lindy heard a click indicating that they had been locked in and the sound of his retreating footsteps.

Sara disentangled herself from Lindy's death grip, running her hands through her hair, her fingers trembling slightly. "What are you doing here, Lindy?"

"What am _I_ doing here? What are _you_ doing here?"

"You shouldn't be here."

Lindy felt like she had slapped her. " _I_ shouldn't be here? I was brought here against my will, Sara. Clearly, so were you. How did they find you?"

Lindy took a step closer to her sister, but Sara took a wild step back. Lindy froze.

"You shouldn't be here," Sara repeated harshly. Her hands gripped her hair as if she wanted to tear it out. "You shouldn't be here."

"Sara-"

"Goddammit!" Sara screamed, kicking the wall beside her. That had to have hurt, but Sara didn't show any signs of physical pain. " _You shouldn't be here!_ "

There was so much fear in Sara's wild eyes she couldn't hide, although Lindy knew she was trying to because of the way she held herself, her chin held high and the way she propelled her anger forward as if to build a wall between the two of them.

"Sara, you don't need to pretend with me. I know you're scared-"

"You don't understand!" Sara wailed. "It means that everything I did was for nothing!"

"What was?" Lindy asked, desperately trying to understand.

"Everything!" Sara screamed. Lindy felt a white hot anger flare up in her. She didn't deserve this. She'd only just found out that her sister hadn't been kidnapped. She had finally found her and yet, here she was being yelled at by the person she had spent so many years searching for.

"What is everything? Leaving me?" Lindy screamed back. She knew she sounded like a scared, abandoned child, but she didn't care anymore. All of the feelings of loneliness and anger and fear were surging forward without volition and she couldn't stop them. "You let me think you were _kidnapped_ , Sara. Who the hell does that?"

Sara flinched. "You know about that?"

"Of course I do! You let me think you had been _taken_ , Sara. At least if I had known you had just left me, I would have known without a doubt that you were alive. Who puts someone through that kind of hell? For _three_ _years_ I thought you'd been taken from right in front of me and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it. Do you have any idea how that felt? What that did to me? Do you?!"

"You don't understand!"

"You're damn right I don't understand! All I understand is that you left me. I know it was to protect me from something, but it's from something that I have absolutely no idea about. You never even tried to talk to me about it." Lindy took a deep shuddering breath, forcing herself to calm down. "After I saw that video of you getting out of what I thought of as the kidnapper's van, looking completely fine—"

"What video?" Sara asked sharply, her eyes narrowed.

Lindy didn't want to get into what had happened with Jake, so she just said, "I found a video of you coming out of the 'kidnapper's van,'" she made air quotes to emphasize her point, "and then your boyfriend picking you up."

Sara looked shocked, muttering a string of words under her breath Lindy couldn't make out.

"Do you want to know what I thought when I saw that video? What I felt?" Lindy asked quietly.

Sara said nothing.

"I thought," Lindy went on, taking her silence as a cue to go on, '"She's okay. Thank God she's okay'. You know that for years I blamed myself? I felt like it was _my_ fault because I couldn't get to you in time? It tore me up inside. Your being taken nearly _killed_ me. And then to find out that you had _faked_ the whole damn thing and that you never told me, never contacted me to tell me you were okay. It hurt. It was like going through that experience all over again." Lindy ran her hands down her face, taking a deep breath.

"I swear, Sara, I just want to understand why you did it. I've been asking myself over and over. Why did you fake your own abduction? What were you trying to protect me from? Why did you put me through that? Why did you do it?" Lindy said the last part so softly she wasn't sure if Sara had heard her, but she knew she had by the look Sara gave her.

It was one full of anger and despair and sadness.

"Lindy-"

"Sara, why didn't you tell me? About anything? I could have helped you. Why didn't you trust me enough to tell me about what was really going on with you?"

This was the question that had haunted her ever since she had found out that Sara had made up the elaborate kidnapping plan and had left to protect her from some unknown person. She had wracked her brain for hours on end, but she hadn't been able to come up with an answer to the question she so desperately needed to know.

"I didn't want you to see what I had become. I was in a bad place-"

"But I could have helped you!" Lindy cried.

"I couldn't let you!" Sara screamed in frustration. "It was _my_ fault. You didn't deserve what I could have brought down on you."

"You're my sister. I'd have done anything for you, and with mom gone-"

"You aren't mom, Lindy! Like you just said, _you are my_ _sister_!" It was the same conversation they'd had the last night they'd been together. It stung now just as much as it did then. Lindy knew she could never be a mother figure to Sara now that they had none, but couldn't she see that she had just been trying to look out for her? To protect her?

Lindy laughed ruefully, smoothing her hands over her hair, trying to hide how they were trembling. "You know, the last thing I thought that we would do when we finally saw each other was fight, but here we are."

Sara exhaled slowly, some of her tension ebbing out. "We have a lot of unresolved issues," she muttered quietly.

Lindy rubbed her temples, hard and sighed. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. I'm just hurt. Look… I know there has to be a perfectly good reason for you doing what you did. I knew it the moment I saw that video, but please, just explain it to me, Sara, and I swear I'll try to understand.

"Don't try to shield me. Don't try to protect me from whatever it was that you fled from anymore. I want to know everything," she pleaded, holding her sister's gaze. "Please don't leave anything out. I just…I want to understand. I thought you were kidnapped for the longest time until recently. I didn't even know if you were alive. I never gave up hope, but I never knew for sure-" Lindy broke off, swallowing the emotional turmoil in her that threatened to spill out. "I deserve to know the truth."

Sara stared at her as if she were at war with herself. Finally, she sighed and sank down onto the cot, as if she had walked a thousand miles and was now finally finding a place to rest. She patted the space beside her, inviting Lindy to sit down, but refusing to look at her. Lindy sat down quietly.

"What I'm about to tell you is really hard for me," Sara began. "The only other person who knows the whole truth is Dylan. He's…"

"I know who he is," Lindy supplied, when Sara didn't say anything else. "You were with him when I picked you up that night, after you'd been gone for three days, and he picked you up after the van dropped you off."

"Right," Sara said quietly. "There's more to it than that, but we'll get to that later." Sara stared at the ground, her body tensing as if she were steeling herself for what she was about to say.

She took a deep breath, looking at Lindy for the first time since she had sat down. "After mom died I was a complete mess. I felt like my world just came crashing down. She was dead, and dad…" she shook her head in disgust. "You know how he was. He was always completely out of it, always ignoring us, always hopped up on sedatives. Not coming home for days at a time, sometimes for a week."

Lindy's heart clenched. She hadn't known that. The longest he had ever left for, before she'd gone away to college, was three days. Never for a week.

"Sara, I-"

Sara smiled at her a little sadly. "It's okay, Lindy. You didn't know…and I didn't want to tell you." She must have seen the confusion on Lindy's face because she explained.

"I thought I could take care of myself. I wanted you to think that I was okay even though I wasn't. I didn't want you to worry about me and come home and see how messed up I was, how I was losing myself in a world so dark and twisted that it felt like nothing could save me.

"You had already deferred your admission to MIT once so that you could stay with me after mom died. You did it even though MIT had been your dream school forever. It's just the way you are, and you were finally getting to go and escape the craziness that was our life. You deserved to leave. I didn't want you to give that up again just because I was losing myself."

She didn't seem to know that Lindy _had_ given it all up.

"What exactly did you lose yourself in?" Lindy asked tentatively. She had an overwhelming feeling it had to do with Sara's ad on Babylon.

Sara took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "Prostitution."

Lindy knew that was what she was going to say, but it still felt like her feet had been swept out from under her.

Sara wouldn't look at her. "I know what you must be thinking about me right now, because trust me, Lindy, I've thought it myself a million times already."

Lindy shook her head and took hold of Sara's hands, making her look up in surprise. "You made a mistake," she told her honestly, looking into her eyes. "I'm not going to judge you over what you did in the past, Sara. What matters is what you do from now on."

Sara searched Lindy's face wonderingly, as if unable to believe what she'd just said. Lindy smoothed Sara's short hair back, away from her face, like she used to do. "If we were all judged over what we did in the past, we would all be stuck on a roller coaster going round and round with no way to get off. We all have the opportunity to change, Sara."

She didn't look convinced. "You need to hear the whole story first."

"Okay, so tell me." Lindy wondered if Sara wanted to tell her the truth as much as she really needed to do it to get some enormous weight off her chest.

Sara hesitated before continuing. "I was stupid." She shook her head in disgust. "So, so stupid." She took a deep breath, her voice wavering as if trying to hold in tears. "I got into drugs again. You know it'd happened before, but mom and dad were around then and sent me to rehab for six weeks and I managed to stay clean afterwards. Now there was no one to stop me. I fell in with the wrong crowd again and someone told me about Babylon and how I could make a lot of money, fast, so I…I…I sold myself. I felt like I had nothing left to lose." She looked utterly ashamed of herself and Lindy felt that cut into her more than the confession did.

"In a way I was happy to lose myself. I wanted to bring myself to my lowest point to convince myself that it was the best I deserved. I wanted to destroy myself Lindy, and I almost did." Her hands clenched into fists. "I almost did when he started calling on me."

She forced herself to go on. Finally allowing herself to tell someone other than Dylan the truth. The truth that they had kept hidden for almost four years.

Lindy held her breath. She knew they were getting to the reason as to why Sara had felt she had to leave. The reason Sara felt the need to protect her from. "Who is he?"

" _He_ ," she spit out, "is a rich man who made his fortune through some shady business, but uses a social and entertainment site company to hide behind **.** He makes a lot of money off of that site and some other investments, but his major source of income is through Babylon—that's how he found me.

His company is based in New York City, but he has a house upstate about twenty minutes away from where we lived so I would just drive there. At first I would be called in occasionally, but then it became more frequent. I didn't see the warning signs until it was too late.

"After a while it became clear that he didn't just want my services—he wanted me. He was _obsessed_ with me. He became more attached, more controlling, more threatening.

"Finally, one day he told me he wanted me to stay with him, but by then I had met Dylan and I was trying to get out of the hole I'd dug myself into. It's like my eyes had finally been opened. I finally saw that what I was doing was utterly screwed up." Sara closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before continuing and Lindy felt a deep dread within her. "I told him no. That I was getting out of this business and he wouldn't be seeing me again—he laughed in my face…and then he took out a file." Sara swallowed hard.

"He'd been collecting information on me. He knew _everything_ about me. He knew what school I went to, where I lived, he knew about our parents… he knew about you. He knew that you were the most important thing to me, so he used you as leverage if I didn't stay with him." Sara's hands were balled into fists as the memories swirled through her, tears streamed down her face and she swiped at them angrily. "You're my only family left, Lindy. I couldn't let him hurt you because of my mistakes."

Lindy felt like she couldn't get enough air into her lungs. "But…you were only sixteen."

Sara shrugged nonchalantly although she was anything but. "That didn't matter. I entered the business. It was my fault and I had to get myself out. I came up with a plan to leave. You already know what it was, but you don't know why I did it."

She rubbed Lindy's knuckles, her voice sounding strained. "I did it because I needed to get him off my trail and the less you knew the less danger you would be in." She squeezed Lindy's hand harder. "I figured if you thought that I was kidnapped, then you wouldn't be able to answer any questions if anyone came around asking them, and you would be safe.

"Dylan helped me plan everything, and suddenly, it was the two of us running away together. That's why I'd disappeared for three days before I disappeared for good—I was preparing. I didn't want you to see that something was wrong, so I kept lashing out at you and pushing you away—right up until the very end. I did it to protect you… and to keep you from seeing what I had become. I was completely and utterly ashamed of myself.

"I thought I could handle it all on my own, but obviously, I only ended up making things worse." Sara's eyes glittered with the tears she was trying hard to hold back. Lindy squeezed her sister's hands tighter. "I fell into the rabbit hole, Lindy. I thought I'd finally found my way out," she surveyed the small, dim room they were locked in, "but it looks like I got dragged back in."

"We'll get out of this, Sara," Lindy promised. "Together." Sara smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. She seemed to have lost all hope of ever getting back to a normal life.

Lindy squeezed her hands in reassurance. She would hold the hope that Sara seemed to be lacking, for the two of them. "Sara, who was the man that was after you?" she asked, her chest tight with anger over everything Sara had had gone through, what she was still going through, and the helplessness she felt for not having known about any of it so that she could have helped her. "Who was the man that made you leave?"

Sara stared stonily at the ground as if reluctant to tell her, after a beat she looked up suddenly, her eyes holding a hard angry glint.

"His name," she growled, "is Hamish Stone."


End file.
